When you buy a bottle of soda at the store, a few things factor into the price: the cost to make the soda, to make the bottle, and to transport it to you.
But the price you pay in store doesn’t actually cover the full cost of your drink, says Northeastern economist Madhavi Venkatesan. She argues that other, less tangible costs—such as the environmental cost of breaking down the plastic bottle, the cost to our health by consuming a beverage largely lacking nutrients, and other such long-term effects—should also be incorporated into the cost.
