'Deadlier than drugs' Mexico hits fizzy drinks with new tax

Mexico has declared war on one of its deadliest foes - but not one of the country's many powerful drug cartels. The Latin American country has doubled down in its battle against a more stealthy killer: sugary drinks.

- Oscar Lopez

"We want people to stop drinking so much soft drink," said President Claudia Sheinbaum bluntly at a news conference last week. The country's 2026 budget, announced last Monday, included a proposal to nearly double the current tax on sugary drinks from 1.64 pesos (about 6.5p) a litre to 3.08 pesos a litre.

This has prompted fierce debate in Mexico, with some welcoming it as an attempt to tackle obesity - and others seeing it as money-making.

Mexico is one of the world's top consumers of sugary drinks, with Mexicans consuming on average 166 litres a year. This has had a devastating impact: one in three Mexican children are overweight or obese while, at 100,000 deaths a year, diabetes is the nation's second-leading cause of death.

"It's deadlier than the drugs trade," said Viri Rios, a Mexican public policy analyst.