Soda taxes spread after votes in four US cities

New York

THREE California cities voted for a tax on sugar-sweetened beverages and another in Colorado was likely to follow suit, unofficial election results showed on Wednesday, as local governments' push to cut soda consumption to stem obesity gathered speed.

The votes on so-called soda taxes in San Francisco, Albany and Oakland in California and in Boulder, Colorado, came a month after the World Health Organization recommended governments impose such taxes to battle obesity, diabetes and other diet-related diseases.