According to the WHO, sugary and alcoholic drinks are becoming more accessible in much of the world due to low or poorly adjusted taxes, contributing to increased obesity, diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and injuries, especially among young people.

At a press conference in Geneva, Switzerland, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus emphasised that taxes are “powerful tools” to reduce harmful consumption and fund essential services.

In two global reports released today, the WHO underlines that weak tax systems keep prices artificially low while health systems face rising costs associated with preventable diseases.

“In most countries, these taxes are too low, poorly designed, rarely adjusted, and often misaligned with public health objectives,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus highlighted during the presentation of the documents.

Despite the billions in profits generated by the global market for sugary and alcoholic beverages, governments collect only a small fraction of these profits through targeted taxes.

“As a result, alcohol and sugary drinks have become more accessible, while the illnesses and injuries associated with their consumption continue to exert increasing pressure on health systems, families, and budgets,” lamented the WHO Director-General.

The reports reveal that 116 countries tax soft drinks, but many sugar-sweetened products – such as natural juices, sweetened dairy drinks, and ready-to-drink coffees – remain exempt. Although 97% of countries tax energy drinks, there has been no progress since 2023.

Portugal, for example, applies a progressive excise tax on sugary drinks, with rates increasing according to sugar content: less than 25 g/L (grams per litre), between 25 and 50 g/L, between 50 and 80 g/L, and above 80 g/L.

In the case of alcohol, 167 countries impose taxes, but these taxes do not keep pace with inflation, thereby making consumption more accessible. Wine remains exempt in at least 25 European countries, including Portugal.

Alcohol has become more accessible since 2022, as taxes do not keep pace with inflation and rising incomes.

In October of last year, the President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, enacted a decree introducing “exemptions from the tax on alcohol and alcoholic beverages,” in accordance with Directive (EU) 2020/1151 of 29 July 2020.

The director of the WHO's Department of Chronic Disease Control and Violence and Injury Prevention, Etienne Krug, warned that cheap alcohol “fosters violence, injuries and diseases,” while the costs fall on society.

The WHO also highlighted that the average tax burden represents only 2% of the price of a common soft drink and that few countries adjust taxes to inflation, allowing harmful products to become progressively cheaper.

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus also mentioned the “3 by 35” initiative, launched in 2025, which “aims to support all countries in using health taxes to increase the real prices of tobacco, alcohol and sugary drinks by 2035”, reducing consumption and protecting global health.