‘Fat tax’ in Hong Kong: necessary or not?

The term ‘fat tax’ maybe new to Hong Kong people, it refers to the taxation charged for food and beverages that are unhealthy or lead to increasing obesity(Oxford Dictionaries, n.d.), or obese individuals (Wang, 2008). Due to the increasing trend of the obesity of primary students, I believe the Hong Kong Government should introduce ‘fat tax’ in the city as to slow down the rapid increasing number of obese primary students, to be a more effective way of keeping Hong Kongers fit and to raise the awareness of health in Hong Kong.

Before explaining the reasons why I support the implementation of ‘fat tax’ in Hong Kong, I would like to categorize the term ‘fat tax’, also known as ‘obesity tax’ in other places. There are two types of fat tax, one is mainly targeting on food and beverage companies, charging for food and drinks related to increase level of obesity(Oxford Dictionaries, n.d.), and another one is focusing on the individuals in the society, charging for long waistlines(Wang, 2008). In a whole, both are aiming to improve the problem of obesity in one city or country.

To begin, the first reason of implementing the fat tax in Hong Kong is solve the rapid increase in number of obese primary students in our city. From the statistics of Centre of Health Protection, the obesity rates were 20.9 percent for primary students in Hong Kong in 2012(as cited in "Decrease in obesity," 2013) compared with 16.4 percent in 1997(as cited in Li, 2012). The rate has raised 4 percent during four years which is in a relatively fast pace for a small city. The reason why Japan can maintain a low obesity rate is the government started to implement the fat tax in 2008 (Onishi, 2008). The taxation is charged on the citizens who have waistlines over certain length. Despite its warning to the people, this policy requires a lot of man power and it can be time consuming to take record of the people’s waistlines. In my opinion, this policy can also apply on Hong Kong citizens since people will exercise more and eat healthy in order to avoid paying the tax, this gives Hong Kong people a financial motivation to keep fit and be healthier. Hong Kong Government can hire other research organizations to record the waistlines of Hong Kongers as to speed up the record-taking process. Thus, with the exercise-promoting campaign going on in Hong Kong, implementing the tax can slow down the obesity in long term in the city.

Another reason of introducing the obesity tax in Hong Kong is to be more effective than the methods using in the city now. Government has been promoting healthy lifestyle and exercise through television advertisements, posters and healthy meals in school campaign. With the purpose of increasing the effectiveness of keeping Hong Kong people fit, government can implement the second type of obesity tax which is to charge tax on the food and beverage companies for selling the food and drinks over certain amount of sugar, sodium or calories. The method is targeting on the food companies, encouraging companies to produce healthier food and obtain a healthy eating habit.

However, like every policy, it has its downside, that is the price of the products may increase when the companies are charged for tax, transferring the financial burden from the companies to the customers. Denmark has implemented the first fat tax in the world to the food with more than 2.3 percent saturated fat in 2011 ("Denmark introduces world's," 2011). A year later, the tax was cancelled by the country due to high cost in both government and industry, and the result is not satisfactory as the eating habit of Danes has not been changed or improved

("Denmark to abolish," 2013). Although this policy failed in Denmark, that does not mean the policy will also fail in Hong Kong. A scientific research in United States showed a positive result of taxation in pizza and soda (Duffey, Gordon-Larsen, Shikany, Guikley, Jacobs & Popkin). The research was done by 5,115 eighteen to thirty year-old adults between 1985 and 2006. The result of the research stated “policies aimed at altering the price of soda or away-from-home pizza may be effective mechanisms to steer US adults toward a more healthful diet and help reduce long-term weight gain or insulin levels over time.(ibid)” The point of showing this research is to prove that if the tax is charged on the right food and drinks that Hong Kong people usually consume, the tax should have a chance to successfully change the eating habit of the citizens. Not to mention the recent implementation of fat tax in Mexico (Boseley, 2013), its government shows a firm stands on setting up taxes against junk food even though it may bring harm to the economy, because the future obesity rate will outweigh the potential decrease in the sales of food and drinks industry. Hong Kong Government should consider implementing fat tax in Hong Kong.

The last reason to introduce fat tax in Hong Kong is to raise the awareness of health in the city. There may be advertisements playing on television, posters sticking on the streets and healthy meals in schools or restaurants, but are these actions enough to make citizens realize the seriousness of obesity and the importance of health? My answer is no. In a survey conducted by the Department of Applied Social Sciences of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University and the Family Health Service of The Department of Health, it interviewed parents of 0 to 4 years old children, only 9.7 percent of them worries their children are eating too much. The survey also showed 50 percent of the obese children’s parents think that the weight of their children is normal ("A survey of," 2012). These results reflect the parents do not know the situation of their children’s health can be damaged by obesity. By using taxation, parents will be more concerned on the health issue related to obesity since issues and matters get more attention when money is involved. In addition, the tax revenue received can be used for campaigns to promote health related issues, for instance organizing group exercising events to encourage citizens to do exercise regularly.

To summarize, implementing fat tax in Hong Kong can slow down the rapid increase of obese primary students in the city in long run. Additionally, this policy is more effective on keeping hogn Kong people fit than the way using now and the public will be more aware to obesity when the tax is implemented. Thus, I urge the Hong Kong Government to introduce the fat tax to the city as soon as possible.

Bibliography

1.          Fat tax. (n.d.) In Oxford Dictionaries (Oxford Dictionaries). Retrieved 4th Nov, 2013, from http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/fat-tax.

2.          Wang, S. S. (2008, June 13). Retrieved 6th Nov, 2013, from http://blogs.wsj.com/health/2008/06/13/another-thing-big-in-japan-measuring-waistlines/.

3.          Decrease in obesity in Hong Kong for three years(港肥胖人口3年下跌). (2013, March 18). Ming Pao. Retrieved 4th Noc, 2013 from http://happypama.mingpao.com/cfm/parenting3.cfm?File=20130318/newa/gha3.txt.

4.          Li, S. (2012, December). Childhood overweight and obesity. Bridge. Retrieved from http://www.studenthealth.gov.hk/english/newsletters/newsletter_57.html.

5.          Onishi, N. (2008, June 13). Japan, seeking trim waists, measures millions . The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/13/world/asia/13fat.html?_r=0

6.          Denmark introduces world's first food fat tax. (2011, October 1). BBC News. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-15137948

7.          Denmark to abolish tax on high-fat foods . (2013, November 10). BBC News. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-20280863

8.          Duffey, K. J., Gordon-Larsen, P., Shikany, J. M., Guikley, D., Jacobs, D. R., & Popkin, B. M. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://archinte.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=774511

9.          Boseley, S. (2013, November 1). Mexico to tackle obesity with taxes on junk food and sugary drinks. The Gurdian. Retrieved from http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/nov/01/mexico-obesity-taxes-junk-food-sugary-drinks-exercise

10.      The Department of Health , Family Health Service. (2012). A survey of infant and young child feeding in hong kong : Parental perceptions and practices. Retrieved from website: http://www.fhs.gov.hk/english/archive/files/reports/Survey_IYCF_parents perception.pdf

What should I major in?

                                   What should I major in?

As a Year 1 student in the four-year curriculum, the most important issue of this year must be the major allocation at the end of semester B. This issue is important for me as it concerns which department I will study in the next three years and which my career path will be. If you ask what I want to major in, I cannot give the answer right away. The opinions from my parents, my teachers and the comparison between different departments are crucial for my decision on what I should major in.

I am used to in the grip of language mania. When I was in a tender age, I liked to pay attention to the language that people speak on the street. While travelling with family to a foreign country, I always listen to the languages people speaking rather than admiring the architecture or tourist spots there. This demonstrated my deep interest in languages and I have been always obsessed with languages for a long time. In past, I selected Spanish and English as my major in associate degree and learned a new language in summer vocation - Russian, which is a total different system with English and Spanish. Even though learning languages is arduous, I believe that there is something fascinating in every language. I really hope that I can join the language department in the future.

Other than my passion for languages, my teachers also directs me to choose language-related subjects as my major. In primary school, my Chinese and English teachers encouraged me to participate in the solo verse speaking competition in the Speech Festival. I got a merit certificate for the first time that I joined such a large-scale competition. My public exam results of Chinese and English is much better than the other subjects. I got a ‘B’ in HKCEE for both Chinese and English.  Apart from the opinions of my teachers, my parents support me to study languages as well. They think that I am not a ‘science person’ as there is no one in our family good at science subjects. Additionally, they say that social science is not suitable for me as I do not have awareness to society or surroundings. Thus, ‘Languages become an enormous part of your life.’ My dad told me. They believe that I am born to work on language-oriented tasks. My parents really support me on studying languages as my future major.

However, after I have lessons for Asian and International studies, I feel interested in this subject. I want to compare the different aspects of these two departments that I want to join at the moment, Asian and International studies and Linguistic and Language Technology. The curriculums of these two majors do not have anything in common. Asian and International Studies teaches about the macroscopic and microscopic about the characteristics of Asia and other countries. Linguistics and Language Technology teaches the various aspects of language, for instance phonetic and semantic. Also, the career path of these two majors can be very diverse. Students can become a diplomat or a researcher after studying Asian and Studies. On the other hand, students learning linguistic can be a translator or teacher. The possibility of the career prospect is endless for both departments.

From all the opinions and comparisons above, I believe Linguistic is a subject that allows me to dig deep into languages, break down the sentences and then put them back in a different way, speak them with various accents and meanings. Combining all the experience and opinions, I believe that I will be satisfied and content if I study languages in my future university life. Thus, it is high time for me to work hard so as to get into the major that I like most - Linguistics and Language Technology.

The Golden City in Spain

Writing Assignment 1-Draft

Descriptive Writing

The Golden City in Spain

Salamanca, a city full of scholars and antiqueness, is located at the northwestern part of Spain. The­­­ city is called the Golden City in Spain as it is composed of spectacular architectures and antique heritage sites which worth lots of fortune. These are the true beauty in Spain which cannot be found anywhere else in the world.

The Plaza Mayor in Salamanca is one of the most beautiful in Spain. The four walls surrounding the square were built in stone, more specifically in sandstone. When the morning sun shines on the plaza, rays of gold gleams through the walls, it is shiny enough to make you squeeze your eyes. The plaza is always full of people, no matter day or night. It is a popular meeting spot for teenagers. They talk, chat, dance and sing all in the Plaza Mayor. They lay down on the stone floor of the plaza, chatting about their university life, gossiping the girls or boys in other classes, debating the issues happening in Spain, “tunas” singing in the middle of the plaza. What teenagers do is totally different from the elderly. They sit on the benches surrounding the main square with their favorite ice cream, then listen to the youth’s laughter and chatter and watch tourists taking group photos and posing funny expression. Simply the most leisure thing to do in the world but maybe that is why they are always happy.

The fortune of Salamanca is more than you think. The New and Old Cathedral, the University of Salamanca and the house of shells are the most reputable architectures in Salamanca. The detailed and delicate carved stone buildings attract thousands of tourists to visit Salamanca every year. Towers, domes, ceilings, pillars are all craved out of stones, sturdily stand on top of the cathedral. The whole cathedral is full of holiness and antiqueness. Inside the cathedral, the neatly arranged benches and exquisite stained glass give people a peaceful feeling, creating a sacred atmosphere.

There are different holy creatures sculpted on the outer walls of these magnificent architectures, with the carve man’s detailed carving, the creatures is so lively and real. The spaceman, the dragon with an ice cream, rabbit and monster are all resting on the wall and watch the lives of people in Salamanca. The wall of the University is full of stories, the most famous one is the frog on the skull. If students can find it out of tons of other sculpture, they can pass the exam and graduate. The skull represents the sick prince who had not graduated before he died and the frog is the doctor who took care of the prince at that time. It was a sad story but this later became a fortunate symbol in the university.

In my point of view, Salamanca is an old but lively city. With all those amazing and grand architectures and the friendly people in the neighborhood, this golden city has hidden many treasures for people to find out. If you have time and want to engage yourself into a historical city, Salamanca is your choice.