Taiwan mulls world's first junk food tax

The Bureau of Health Promotion (BHP) is drafting a bill to charge a special tax on food that is considered unhealthy, such as sugary drinks, candies, cakes, fast food, and alcohol.

According to BHP Director General Chiou Shu-ti, the proposal aims to promote a healthier eating habits.

Finance Minister Lee Shu-der said he supports the basic concepts of the proposal under the condition that it will regulate junk food prices to protect consumer rights.

The BHP is expecting the Legislative Yuan to approve it by the end of next year and to enact the tariff in 2011.

If passed, Taiwan could be the first country with a “junk food” tax, local reporters said.

Some consumers have complained that the possible tax will mean even higher prices given the alaready increasing costs of sweets.

An official from the John Tung Foundation, which promotes a healthy diet, said tax should be levied on food products containing over 50 percent of total fats.

She added that BPH should also tax drinks containing over 7.5 grams of sugar per 100 grams. Most juices and soft drinks sold in the market exceeds the foundation's suggested level, according to the local media.

In the UK, doctors recently proposed a similar draft on a “chocolate tax” to tackle the increasing levels of obesity .

The proposal was voted down earlier this year by two votes in the British Medical Association, a professional organization composed of more than two-thirds of doctors in the UK.

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