War on sugar: What other countries are doing

Philippines: Sales down; savings in healthcare a possibility

Sales of sugar-sweetened beverages at mom-and-pop stores in the Philippines have fallen in the wake of taxes imposed last year.
Sales of sugar-sweetened beverages at mom-and-pop stores in the Philippines have fallen in the wake of taxes imposed last year. ST FILE PHOTO
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The Philippines levied taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages on Jan 1 last year, as part of a broader tax reform package and to help avert more than 24,000 premature deaths linked to diseases such as diabetes, stroke and heart failure over 20 years.

A tax of 6 pesos (S$0.16) a litre was slapped on drinks using sugar and other sweeteners, and 12 pesos a litre on high-fructose corn syrup.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Sunday Times on January 20, 2019, with the headline Philippines: Sales down; savings in healthcare a possibility. Subscribe