Mexico: Study Finds Soft Drink Tax Effective

After a new tax on soft drinks, over half of Mexicans have reduced their consumption of sugary soft drinks, the National Obesity Survey found.

The taxes in Mexico add one peso, about 7 cents, to the cost of a liter of sugary drinks in addition to a 5 per cent of the price to foods with 275 calories or more per 100 grams. 

The survey also found that almost all respondents recognized that the consumption of soft drinks was a cause of obesity and diabetes.

Seventeen percent of respondents said they consumed more than three liters of soft drinks a week this year, down from the 25 percent who drank this amount in 2013.

“Consumers are becoming aware of the fact that drinking soda and sugary beverages is bad,” said the organization which is made up of non-governmental organizations in the report.

Ex Mexican president Vicente Fox (2000-2006) was a top Coca-Cola executive, as Mexico saw a 3 fold increase in its coca-cola products.

The nation is the highest consumer in the world of Coca-Cola products followed by Chile and the United States.

For example, in Los Altos, each inhabitant drinks 2.25 liters daily and is the reason why the bottles there are extra-large and not sold anywhere else. 

And directly related to this, Mexico is the country with the second-largest number of obese adults, trailing just the United States, and has the largest number of overweight children.

But the Coke empire is still expanding in developing nations, with in 2000, BRIC countries making up only 12 percent of Coke’s total sales. By 2010, they hit 20 percent of its total sales, and they’re expected to make up 25 percent of Coke’s global sales by 2015. 

Another Latin American nation, Ecuador plans to introduce a tax on food sold by fast food chains, Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa said on September 4.

Details of the plans have yet to be disclosed, but Correa said the revenue from the tax will be used to fund health care spending.