Excise taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages in Latin America and the Caribbean
Objective. To characterize the design of excise taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) in Latin America and the Caribbean and assess opportunities to increase their impact on SSB consumption and health. Methods. A comprehensive search and review of the legislation in effect as of March 2019, coll...
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Pan American Health Organization
2021-03-01
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doaj-4faf4fa91b504a74bc2faa976fcce77d2021-03-12T16:12:18ZengPan American Health OrganizationRevista Panamericana de Salud Pública1020-49891680-53482021-03-0145211910.26633/RPSP.2021.21rpspExcise taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages in Latin America and the CaribbeanRosa Carolina Sandoval0Maxime Roche1Itziar Belausteguigoitia2Miriam Alvarado3Luis Galicia4Fabio S. Gomes5Guillermo Paraje6Pan American Health Organization, Washington D.C., United States of AmericaPan American Health Organization, Washington D.C., United States of AmericaUniversity of Lancaster, Lancaster, United KingdomUniversity of Cambridge, Cambridge, United KingdomMinistry of Health of Uruguay, Montevideo, UruguayPan American Health Organization, Washington D.C., United States of AmericaUniversidad Adolfo Ibáñez, Santiago, ChileObjective. To characterize the design of excise taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) in Latin America and the Caribbean and assess opportunities to increase their impact on SSB consumption and health. Methods. A comprehensive search and review of the legislation in effect as of March 2019, collected through existing Pan American Health Organization and World Health Organization monitoring tools, secondary sources, and surveying ministries of finance. The analysis focused on the type of products taxed, and the structure and base of these excise taxes. Results. Out of the 33 countries analyzed, 21 apply excise taxes on SSBs. Seven countries also apply excise taxes on bottled water and at least four include sugar-sweetened milk drinks. Ten of these excise taxes are ad valorem with some tax bases set early in the value chain, seven are amount-specific, and four have either a combined or mixed structure. Three countries apply excise taxes based on sugar concentration. Conclusions. While the number of countries applying excise taxes on SSBs is promising, there is great heterogeneity in design in terms of structure, tax base, and products taxed. Existing excise taxes could be further leveraged to improve their impact on SSB consumption and health by including all categories of SSBs, excluding bottled water, and relying more on amount-specific taxes regularly adjusted for inflation and possibly based on sugar concentration. All countries would benefit from additional guidance. Future research should aim to address this gap.https://iris.paho.org/handle/10665.2/53331noncommunicable diseasesnutrition policyhealth economicsobesitylegislation as topic |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Rosa Carolina Sandoval Maxime Roche Itziar Belausteguigoitia Miriam Alvarado Luis Galicia Fabio S. Gomes Guillermo Paraje |
spellingShingle |
Rosa Carolina Sandoval Maxime Roche Itziar Belausteguigoitia Miriam Alvarado Luis Galicia Fabio S. Gomes Guillermo Paraje Excise taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages in Latin America and the Caribbean Revista Panamericana de Salud Pública noncommunicable diseases nutrition policy health economics obesity legislation as topic |
author_facet |
Rosa Carolina Sandoval Maxime Roche Itziar Belausteguigoitia Miriam Alvarado Luis Galicia Fabio S. Gomes Guillermo Paraje |
author_sort |
Rosa Carolina Sandoval |
title |
Excise taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages in Latin America and the Caribbean |
title_short |
Excise taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages in Latin America and the Caribbean |
title_full |
Excise taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages in Latin America and the Caribbean |
title_fullStr |
Excise taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages in Latin America and the Caribbean |
title_full_unstemmed |
Excise taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages in Latin America and the Caribbean |
title_sort |
excise taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages in latin america and the caribbean |
publisher |
Pan American Health Organization |
series |
Revista Panamericana de Salud Pública |
issn |
1020-4989 1680-5348 |
publishDate |
2021-03-01 |
description |
Objective. To characterize the design of excise taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) in Latin America and the Caribbean and assess opportunities to increase their impact on SSB consumption and health.
Methods. A comprehensive search and review of the legislation in effect as of March 2019, collected through existing Pan American Health Organization and World Health Organization monitoring tools, secondary sources, and surveying ministries of finance. The analysis focused on the type of products taxed, and the structure and base of these excise taxes.
Results. Out of the 33 countries analyzed, 21 apply excise taxes on SSBs. Seven countries also apply excise taxes on bottled water and at least four include sugar-sweetened milk drinks. Ten of these excise taxes are ad valorem with some tax bases set early in the value chain, seven are amount-specific, and four have either a combined or mixed structure. Three countries apply excise taxes based on sugar concentration.
Conclusions. While the number of countries applying excise taxes on SSBs is promising, there is great heterogeneity in design in terms of structure, tax base, and products taxed. Existing excise taxes could be further leveraged to improve their impact on SSB consumption and health by including all categories of SSBs, excluding bottled water, and relying more on amount-specific taxes regularly adjusted for inflation and possibly based on sugar concentration. All countries would benefit from additional guidance. Future research should aim to address this gap. |
topic |
noncommunicable diseases nutrition policy health economics obesity legislation as topic |
url |
https://iris.paho.org/handle/10665.2/53331 |
work_keys_str_mv |
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