Colombia thông qua 'luật đồ ăn vặt' đầy tham vọng để giải quyết các bệnh về lối sống

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After years of campaigning (vận động), the “junk food law” (luật đồ ăn vặt) came into force (có hiệu lực) this month and a levy (thuế) will be introduced gradually. An additional tax on affected foods will begin at 10% immediately, rising to 15% next year and reaching 20% in 2025.

“Countries around the world have been implementing health taxes, for example by taxing tobacco or sugary drinks, but few have extended them to processed foods,” said Franco Sassi, international health policy and economics professor at London’s Imperial College Business School. “Colombia’s model is more expansive than what we have seen before and could serve as an example to other countries.”

The tax targets ultra-processed products defined as industrially manufactured (sản xuất công nghiệp) ready-to-eat foods, as well as those high in salt (muối) and saturated fat (mỡ bão hòa), such as chocolates or crisps. Sassi said some compromises had been made with the food industry, such as excluding certain processed foods, for example sausages, from the tax.

The Colombian diet is high in sodium, which has been linked to an increase in cardiovascular diseases (bệnh tim mạch), such as strokes (đột quỵ) and heart failure, which account for almost a quarter of deaths annually. The average Colombian consumes 12g of salt a day – the highest rate in Latin America and among the highest in the world. Nearly a third of adults in the country have high blood pressure (huyết áp cao).

source: the guardian,