Colombia passes ambitious 'junk food law' to tackle lifestyle diseases
The Latin American country is one of the first in the world to introduce a health tax targeting ultra-processed foods
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“Countries around the world have been implementing health taxes, for example by taxing tobacco or sugary drinks, but few have extended them to processed foods,” said Franco Sassi, international health policy and economics professor at London’s Imperial College Business School. “Colombia’s model is more expansive than what we have seen before and could serve as an example to other countries.”
“ The tax targets ultra-processed products defined as industrially manufactured ready-to-eat foods, as well as those high in salt and saturated fat, such as chocolates or crisps. Sassi said some compromises had been made with the food industry, such as excluding certain processed foods, for example sausages, from the tax.
The Colombian diet is high in sodium, which has been linked to an increase in cardiovascular diseases, such as strokes and heart failure, which account for almost a quarter of deaths annually. The average Colombian consumes 12g of salt a day – the highest rate in Latin America and among the highest in the world. Nearly a third of adults in the country have high blood pressure. https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2023/nov/10/colombia-junk-food-tax-improve-health-acc