It took the Government just shy of a decade to get serious about taxing sugary drinks in such a way as to drive down demand, and then only when it became indisputable that high sugar consumption was accelerating obesity and its evil twin, diabetes, in Jamaica.

There was the usual talk, studies, conferences, under-funded public education campaigns, and the like about how to get down the consumption of sugary drinks. Weak threats were made against school canteens and vendors outside the gates, as well as empty promises to comply with World Health Organization (WHO) standards within public health facilities.

But as the numbers were crunched further, showing in one recent study that 64.7 per cent of women and 30.7 per cent of men in an urban population were overweight, everybody panicked.

Roughly 21.9 per cent of older Jamaicans reported having both hypertension and diabetes, significant contributors to blindness from cataracts and glaucoma. A whopping 92.5 per cent of individuals with diabetes were on some form of treatment.

The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) warned that chronic diseases like diabetes were now a major burden on the health system, which demonstrated that it might be less costly to cut sugar content in drinks than treat the deadly diseases related to sugar. The stark truth could no longer be denied.

Health and Wellness Minister Dr Christopher Tufton, knowing that potential election donors could get sour, must have gritted his teeth when he decided to go with the recommendation to impose the tax on sugary drinks, beginning this fiscal year.

As of May 1, 2026, a special consumption tax (SCT) of $0.02 per millilitre, or at least $12 to a 600ml bottle, will be introduced on non-alcoholic sugary beverages, applicable to both imported and locally produced sugary drinks.

The Government expects to raise $10.1 billion in revenue from the tax. It will add sodas, fruit-flavoured drinks, and non-alcoholic beverages with added sugar or sweeteners to the infamous list of so-called sin taxes (tobacco, alcohol, etc).

Dr Tufton said the tax is meant to reduce the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages to combat non-communicable diseases, like diabetes and hypertension, by adopting the WHO’s recommendation of 2.5 grams per 100 millilitres for each serving of sugar content.

He rightly questioned the high sugar content in some beverages on the market: “We have, in some instances, 17 grams, 20 grams, 10 grams, or even far more,” and urged Jamaicans to examine product labels and “look for the one with the lowest sugar per millilitre per serving because, the truth is, sugary drinks come with side effects”.

We are happy to see that the Medical Association of Jamaica has welcomed the tax as a long-overdue move to tackle health crises; even while lobbyists for the beverage industry continue to hold that the tax would mostly affect low-income households and should be based on sugar content rather than just container size.

This is an important tax, but we share concerns that governments might be tempted to forget its real purpose. Hopefully, a way will be found to channel the money raised into health care, bolstered by public education.

The ministry should also ensure that all government canteens and food entities comply with the WHO recommendations, as taxation won’t be enough.