Business a.m.
The International Council of Beverages Associations (ICBA) has criticised a new World Health Organization report urging governments to strengthen taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages and alcohol, arguing that the policy prescription is not supported by evidence.
In its 2025 Global Report on Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Taxes, the WHO calls on governments to expand and increase levies on sugary drinks as part of efforts to curb non-communicable diseases. ICBA said the report overstates the effectiveness of taxation while downplaying alternative measures that, it argues, have delivered measurable results.
Katherine Loatman, ICBA’s executive director, said the association shared the WHO’s objective of reducing diet-related diseases but questioned the organisation’s continued emphasis on fiscal measures. She said that more than a decade of international experience showed that beverage taxes had failed to reduce obesity rates or produce meaningful improvements in public health outcomes.
“WHO continues to minimise the role of proven sugar reduction strategies such as reformulation and smaller portion sizes, while advancing unproven claims about taxation. These taxes raise the cost of daily life for consumers and do not help people achieve balanced diets,” Loatman said.
She added that the WHO itself had previously concluded that sugar-sweetened beverage taxes did not qualify as “Best Buy” interventions, the body’s term for policies that deliver the greatest health impact for the lowest cost.
ICBA said governments should instead prioritise policies backed by strong evidence and cost-effectiveness. The association said the beverage industry would continue to pursue what it described as collaborative solutions, including expanding access to low- and no-sugar products, improving transparency through labelling, and maintaining high standards for responsible marketing.
Founded in 1995, ICBA is an international non-governmental organisation representing the global non-alcoholic beverage industry. Its members include national and regional trade associations and multinational beverage companies operating in more than 200 countries and territories, producing a wide range of products from soft drinks and bottled water to ready-to-drink teas, coffees and juices.
