Critics Attempt To Delay New York City Soda Ban

Lovers of big sugary drinks in New York City may not have to dread the impending big sugary drink ban, slated to be enforced next month — opponents have asked the judge who is set to declare a ruling on the ban to delay the enforcement. 

The Associated Press reports that beverage makers, restaurateurs, and other critics of the ban have asked to to delay the enforcement, set to start March 12, until the judge has made a final ruling on the lawsuit filed. The opponents hope that the lawsuit they filed several months ago will declare the ban illegal. Said the president of the New York Korean-American Grocers Association, Chong Sik Le, in court papers, "It would be a tremendous waste of expense, time, and effort for our members to incur all of the harm and costs associated with the ban if this court decides that the ban is illegal." Makes enough sense. The court papers allege that the cost of the soda ban to the American Beverage Industry members would be about $600,000 for new cups and labeling; another group, the Foodservice Packaging Institute, said in the papers that the cost of the soda ban could range from $300,000 to close to $1 million. 

However, city lawyers are determined to push ahead with the ban, and Mayor Bloomberg called the lawsuit a "disgrace." Who will win the battle royale of soda?