The National Treasury proposed 20% tax on sugary soft drinks derives from the National Department of Health strategy to reduce obesity. It is rooted in the scientific consensus that these kinds of drinks are a key factor behind rising obesity and the attendant ailments of diabetes, heart disease and some cancers.
The makers of sugary soft drinks have reacted to the proposed tax with an aggressive attack that contends, among other things, that the tax will lead to massive job losses.
This brief weighs up the arguments by the Beverage Association of South Africa, and finds serious flaws in the data behind them.
Read online: Debates on the sugar tax