# 09-MAY-26 Soft Drink Shakeup, Gen Z Financial Stress, and the New Thrift Economy

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/united-network-news-the-rundown-6611121/09-may-26-soft-drink-shakeup-gen-z-financial-stress-and-the-new-thrift-economy
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/united-network-news-the-rundown-6611121/09-may-26-soft-drink-shakeup-gen-z-financial-stress-and-the-new-thrift-economy.md
Podcast: [United Network News: The Rundown](https://stenobird.com/podcast/united-network-news-the-rundown-6611121)
Published: 2026-05-10T02:08:04+00:00
Episode link: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/united-network-news/episodes/09-MAY-26-Soft-Drink-Shakeup--Gen-Z-Financial-Stress--and-the-New-Thrift-Economy-e3j51j3
Audio file: https://anchor.fm/s/e8842e3c/podcast/play/119751715/https%3A%2F%2Fd3ctxlq1ktw2nl.cloudfront.net%2Fstaging%2F2026-4-10%2Fb408a08a-fe72-f829-8b3c-2f9c535a5570.mp3
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Duration seconds: 1880

## Resource

From Belgium to South Africa, Uganda to Australia, and across the United States, England, Canada, and India, this week’s Rundown follows the stories quietly reshaping everyday life. Britain’s sugar tax may have cut sugar in soft drinks, but many companies swapped it for artificial sweeteners instead, opening a whole new debate about what we’re actually consuming. In the U.S., personal bankruptcies are climbing, especially among younger Americans who increasingly see bankruptcy less as failure and more like hitting a financial reset button in a burning economy. And thrift shopping? What used to feel like a treasure hunt for affordable finds has turned into a high-speed reseller gold rush, with apps like Depop, Poshmark, and eBay changing the game. The question now: who’s really benefiting from the secondhand boom? Join Sunny, Calen, Kim, and the Field Messengers for THE REAL NEWS every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday! Get instant access to our content and online community through our desktop app, or watch on the go with iOS, Android, AppleTV, FireTV, or Roku. #realnews #restoration #newearth ⭐ START YOUR FREE TRIAL http://unitednetwork.earth ⭐ BECOME A FIELD MESSENGER AND DOWNLOAD THE APP https://news.unitednetwork.earth/about-field-messengers ⭐ SUPPORT US https://tr.ee/support_us 🔥 YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@UnitedNetworkNews2024 🔥 Facebook https://www.facebook.com/UnitedNetworkProductions 🔥 Twitter https://twitter.com/unitednetwork24 🔥 Instagram https://www.instagram.com/unitednetworkproductions 🔥 TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@unitednetworknews2024 🔥 LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/united-network-productions

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## Transcript

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