New sugary drinks tax could lead to healthier population, says Minister Tufton

Jamaica’s Health and Wellness Minister, Dr. Chris Tufton, says the newly announced tax on sugary drinks will not be a burden if consumers make a conscious choice to reduce their intake.

“The goal is to foster a culture of moderation, improve health outcomes, and reduce disease burden without alienating industry stakeholders,” Tufton said Friday after a meeting with unit heads at his ministry. He noted that efforts to lower sugar content in soft drinks predate the announcement by Finance Minister Fayval Williams on Thursday.

Tufton emphasized that decreasing sugary drink consumption could lead to healthier families and a healthier nation. “It will also lead to a decrease in diabetes and obesity,” he said. He recalled that in his 2018/19 sectoral debate, he announced that effective January 2019, the government would restrict certain types of sugary drinks in schools and public health institutions.

“By sugary drinks we mean beverages that contain sugar added by the manufacturer. It does not include 100 juice or unsweetened milk,” Tufton said at the time, adding that it was part of the response to the obesity crisis.

The new levy, outlined in the Ministry Paper on Revenue Measures for 2026/2027, proposes a special consumption tax (SCT) of $0.02 per millilitre on non-alcoholic sweetened beverages, projected to raise $10.1 billion in the 2026/27 fiscal year. The measure is expected to take effect in the first quarter of the new financial year.

PwC Jamaica’s analysis of the tax highlighted its potential impact on consumption behaviour. “There is no question as to the effects of an unhealthy diet on the Jamaican population. To the extent that the measures seek to drive a change in consumption behaviour, consideration could be given to applying a lower SCT rate on beverages below a certain sugar content (or excluding unsweetened beverages) and applying a higher rate to those above the threshold. This would incentivise manufacturers and importers to decrease manufacture/importation of beverages with a higher sugar content, while still raising revenue,” the audit and consultancy firm said.

However, the measure has faced criticism from industry stakeholders. Wisynco Group Chairman William Mahfood warned it could disproportionately affect Jamaica’s poorest households without significantly reducing consumption or improving public health.

Tufton urged manufacturers to reformulate products by using less sugar, stressing the importance of a balanced, non-hostile conversation that encourages industry reformulation and addresses the urgent public health risks of high sugary drink consumption, especially among low socio-economic groups.