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Hearing On N.Y.'s Soda Ban Brimming With Opinions

LINDA WERTHEIMER, HOST:

Our last word in business is: Soda wars.

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is proposing a ban on super-sized sodas. But not all New Yorkers are in the mood for cutting back.

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

Yesterday, the city held the first and only public hearing on the matter. Brooklyn Borough president Marty Markowitz criticized the ban. He says a lazy lifestyle contributes to obesity just as much as soda.

MARTY MARKOWITZ: I don't exercise nearly as much as I should, commissioner, and my genes are working against me. I was an overweight kid and I'm an overweight adult.

WERTHEIMER: Others at the hearing gave their support to the ban. One man said he lost 50 pounds when he cut out sugary drinks from his diet 10 years ago. Doctors likened soda companies to big tobacco.

MONTAGNE: The hearing before New York City's Board of Health went on for hours. Ultimately, it is up to the health board, which has the power to ban big sodas, and it will vote in September.

That's the business news on MORNING EDITION, from NPR News. I'm Renee Montagne.

WERTHEIMER: And I'm Linda Wertheimer. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.