The e-Book

1,000 IDEAS & ACTIVITIES FOR
LANGUAGE
TEACHERS

News English Lessons
FREE Handout, Listening & Quizzes - Fatty Food Tax
(11 Pages of Materials & 8 Online Activities)

Home
Donate

E-mail this lesson to
a student /colleague

COPYRIGHT:
Please write to
me for permission.

Denmark Starts World's First Food Fat Tax (2nd October, 2011)

Denmark has introduced the world's first tax on fatty food. Danish shoppers will now have to pay extra when they buy foods that are high in the cholesterol-packed fat. The new tax is at a rate of $2.87 per kilo of saturated fat. This means 250 grams of butter will go up in price from $2.78 to $3.25 and the cost of a packet of potato chips will rise by 15 cents. Milk, cheese, pizza, meat and oil will also cost more. Many shoppers tried to buy this food before the prices went up.

Advertisements

The new tax will help people eat less fatty food. Around 10 per cent of Danes are overweight but the government wants to reduce this number. Doctors say four per cent of deaths in Denmark are because of saturated fats. Other European countries are looking at Denmark’s fat tax to see if it works. Britain has obesity rates of over 20 per cent, the highest in Europe. British doctors say taxing food that is high in fat will help cut the number of people who die from heart attacks.

Advertisements

PHRASE MATCH

Match the following phrases from the article.

Paragraph 1

1.	the world's first tax	a.	pay extra
2	shoppers will now have to	b.	potato chips
3.	at a rate	c.	on fatty food
4.	go up	d.	went up
5.	a packet of	e.	in price
6.	before the prices	f.	of $2.87 per kilo

Paragraph 2

1.	The new tax will help people	a.	rates
2	Around 10% of Danes are	b.	heart attacks
3.	saturated	c.	eat less
4.	obesity	d.	fats
5.	taxing food that	e.	overweight
6.	people who die from	f.	is high in fat

LISTENING GAP FILL

Denmark has introduced the world's ___________________ food. Danish shoppers will now ___________________ when they buy foods that are high in the cholesterol-packed fat. The new ___________________ $2.87 per kilo of saturated fat. This means 250 grams of butter will ___________________ from $2.78 to $3.25 and the ___________________ of potato chips will rise by 15 cents. Milk, cheese, pizza, meat and oil will also cost more. Many shoppers ___________________ food before the prices went up.

The new tax ___________________ less fatty food. Around 10 per cent of Danes are overweight but the government wants to ___________________. Doctors say four per cent of deaths in Denmark are because of ___________________. Other European countries are looking at Denmark’s fat tax ___________________. Britain has obesity rates of over 20 per cent, ___________________ Europe. British doctors say taxing food that is high in fat ___________________ number of people who die from heart attacks.

MULTIPLE CHOICE

Denmark has introduced the world's first tax (1) ____ fatty food. Danish shoppers will now have to pay extra when they buy foods that are (2) ____ in the cholesterol-packed fat. The new tax is at a rate (3) ____ $2.87 per kilo of saturated fat. This means 250 grams of butter will go up in price from $2.78 to $3.25 and the (4) ____ of a packet of potato chips will rise (5) ____ 15 cents. Milk, cheese, pizza, meat and oil will also cost more. Many shoppers tried to buy this food before the prices (6) ____ up.

The new tax will help people eat (7) ____ fatty food. Around 10 per cent of Danes are overweight but the government wants to reduce (8) ____ number. Doctors say four per cent (9) ____ deaths in Denmark are because of saturated fats. Other European countries are looking at Denmark’s fat tax to (10) ____ if it works. Britain has obesity rates of over 20 per cent, the highest in Europe. British doctors say (11) ____ food that is high in fat will help cut the number of people who die from (12) ____ attacks.

Put the correct words from this table into the article.

1.	(a)	in	(b)	on	(c)	to
2.	(a)	high	(b)	deep	(c)	wide
3.	(a)	to	(b)	so	(c)	of
4.	(a)	sell	(b)	cost	(c)	label
5.	(a)	by	(b)	of	(c)	from
6.	(a)	went	(b)	gone	(c)	have
7.	(a)	less	(b)	small	(c)	few
8.	(a)	them	(b)	this	(c)	these
9.	(a)	by	(b)	to	(c)	of
10.	(a)	look	(b)	see	(c)	stare
11.	(a)	tax	(b)	taxes	(c)	taxing
12	(a)	stomach	(b)	brain	(c)	heart

SPELLING

Spell the jumbled words (from the text) correctly.

Paragraph 1
1.	the rldws'o first tax
2.	afytt food
3.	pay taerx
4.	cholesterol-cpeakd fat
5.	a pkcate of potato chips
6.	before the cripes went up
Paragraph 2
7.	urodna 10 per cent of Danes
8.	cdeuer this number
9.	hoetr European countries
10.	obesity strea
11.	British odstcro
12.	heart tkaasct

PUT THE TEXT BACK TOGETHER

Number these lines in the correct order.

( )	at Denmark’s fat tax to see if it works. Britain has obesity
( )	rise by 15 cents. Milk, cheese, pizza, meat and oil will also cost more. Many
( )	overweight but the government wants to reduce this number. Doctors say four per cent
( )	of deaths in Denmark are because of saturated fats. Other European countries are looking
( )	The new tax will help people eat less fatty food. Around 10 per cent of Danes are
( )	up in price from $2.78 to $3.25 and the cost of a packet of potato chips will
( )	is at a rate of $2.87 per kilo of saturated fat. This means 250 grams of butter will go
( )	rates of over 20 per cent, the highest in Europe. British doctors say taxing
( )	shoppers tried to buy this food before the prices went up.
( )	food that is high in fat will help cut the number of people who die from heart attacks.
( )	have to pay extra when they buy foods that are high in the cholesterol-packed fat. The new tax
( 1 )	Denmark has introduced the world's first tax on fatty food. Danish shoppers will now

WORD JUMBLE

With a partner, put the words back into the correct order.

1.	tax first world's The food fatty on.
2.	now will Shoppers extra pay to have.
3.	new $2.87 tax is at per a kilo rate of The
4.	will rise The cost of a packet of potato chips.
5.	food buy tried Many this to shoppers.
6.	help The people new eat tax less will.
7.	reduce to wants government The number this.
8.	looking are Countries tax fat Denmark’s at.
9.	over cent has of per Britain rates 20 obesity.
10.	from of die attacks number who heart The people.

DISCUSSION (Write your own questions)

STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)
1.	________________________________________________________
2.	________________________________________________________
3.	________________________________________________________
4.	________________________________________________________
5.	________________________________________________________
6.	________________________________________________________

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)
1.	________________________________________________________
2.	________________________________________________________
3.	________________________________________________________
4.	________________________________________________________
5.	________________________________________________________
6.	________________________________________________________

WRITING

Write about fatty food for 10 minutes. Show your partner your paper. Correct each other’s work.

______________________________________________________________________________

HOMEWORK

1. VOCABULARY EXTENSION: Choose several of the words from the text. Use a dictionary or Google’s search field (or another search engine) to build up more associations / collocations of each word.

2. FATTY FOOD: Search the Internet and find more information about fatty food. Talk about what you discover with your partner(s) in the next lesson.

3. MAGAZINE ARTICLE: Write a magazine article about fatty food. Include imaginary interviews with a food expert and people who love fatty food. Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Give each other feedback on your articles.

4. WHAT HAPPENED NEXT? Write a newspaper article about the next stage in this news story. Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Give each other feedback on your articles.

5. LETTER: Write a letter to a food expert. Ask him/her three questions about fatty food. Give him/her three of your opinions on it. Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Your partner will answer the questions you asked.

Back to the top

News English Lessons FREE Handout, Listening & Quizzes - Fatty Food Tax (11 Pages of Materials & 8 Online Activities)