Bitter debate

What does a sugar tax do and what doesn’t it do?

(Bild: stock.adobe.com/Mdv Edwards)

Doctors dismiss the tax on sweet drinks, which is also being discussed due to the urgent need for government revenue, as too expensive and ineffective.

Experts are in no doubt that overweight and obesity are a global problem. Recently published data from a study in the specialist journal "Lancet" shows that one in eight people worldwide is affected by these conditions. Since 1990, the prevalence of obesity has more than doubled in adults and even quadrupled in children and adolescents. The main factor associated with this devastating development is the rampant consumption of sweetened food and drink in all its forms. "The results of large global cross-sectional studies show these health risks with all their consequences such as diabetes, strokes and heart attacks in almost all age groups," says Prof. Dr. Markus Metka, a leading anti-ageing physician and respected nutritionist, sounding the alarm.

The tax is intended to reduce the excessive consumption of sweetened drinks and food - and thus also the number of overweight people.

(Bild: APA/ZB/Sebastian Kahnert)

Alleged way out of the misery: Various countries such as France, Mexico, Norway, Chile and the UK are focusing on a sugar tax specifically for picky drinks and soft drinks to combat this trend. This is intended to bring about a healthier lifestyle by encouraging the population to consume fewer sweet juices. Diagnostic objective: These measures should lead to a noticeable reduction in sugar intake, which in turn is reflected in lower overweight and obesity figures.

Sweets would become more expensive for consumers
"The example of the UK shows that no really relevant revenue can be expected because the beverage industry relies entirely on artificial sweeteners to avoid the tax," says Dr. Manuel Schätzer from the Austrian SIPCAN Institute, dampening fiscal hopes. According to a meticulous study of the situation in the UK, this is even more serious: The population has nevertheless become significantly more overweight as a result of the sugar tax. The initial situation: in the United Kingdom, the amount of the tax depends on the sugar content. Soft drinks containing 5 to 8 grams of sugar per 100 milliliters are taxed at the equivalent of 0.21 euros per liter, while those containing more than 8 grams per 100 ml are taxed at the equivalent of 0.28 euros. The idea was that the industry in the UK would swallow these levies, but the increase was passed on to consumers in the countries concerned.

Artificial sweeteners as loopholes
Schätzer's main criticism is that a domestic sugar tax could undo the intensive and successful efforts to get the population used to gradually reducing sweetness spoon by spoon. In any case, he is convinced that no really relevant revenue can be expected "because the beverage industry relies heavily on artificial sweeteners to avoid the rather bitter tax". The irony of the debate: according to the unanimous medical opinion, the tax would have the opposite effect on public health. The population would become measurably and significantly fatter, because being flooded with sweeteners does not make you slim. On the contrary, the various artificial sweeteners only increase the craving for "real" sweets by deceiving the body. Austria's approximately 600,000 diabetics know this from their own painful experience.

A diabetic woman measuring her blood sugar level

(Bild: Peter Maszlen/stock.adobe.com)

Tobacco and alcohol should be taxed more heavily
As in the British Isles, this would inevitably increase healthcare costs for the state in the long term. Another recurring topic of discussion is an increase in tobacco and alcohol taxes, as recently called for by IHS CEO Holger Bonin. Last year, government revenue from domestic smokers rose to 2.14 billion euros.