16 ounces sodas still be able to buy
Photo Credit: Yaisy Mendoza

Supreme Court stop NYC ban on large sugary drinks
Photo credit: Yaisy Mendoza

Fabian Singh, a Business Administration student at York College playing cards and drinking his favorite 20 ounces of soda (17 tsp sugar)
Photo credit: Yaisy Mendoza

New York State Supreme Court invalidated a NYC possible ban on large soft drinks by saying that major Bloomberg‘s proposal to restrict sugary sodas larger than 16 ounces was arbitrary and capricious. 

Last September Bloomberg’s proposal was approved by the NYC board of Health. Bloomberg argued that the ban would prevent obesity and promote a healthy lifestyle.

Bloomberg’s veto would have prohibited the sale of 16 ounces larger-sized drinks in movie theaters, fast food restaurants and street vendors. However, convenience and grocery stores were exempt.

“We believe that the judge’s decision was clearly in error, and we believe we will win on appeal,” he said.

According to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and t,e Hispanic Federation, this measure would have hurt small, minority-owned businesses.

In a message posted on the Hispanic Federation website, Jose Calderon, president of HF, announced that they had been clear in their opposition to the ban.

“If implemented, the ban would allow supermarkets and big chain stores to sell sodas of any size, while limiting “mom and pop” businesses from doing so”, he said. “It was arbitrary and discriminatory.”