Korean Association of Tax Policy, Korea Taxpayers Association co-host tax policy seminar

Sugar intake already falling; experts urge non-price policies first

Participants discuss sugar levies at the 34th Tax Policy Seminar jointly hosted by the Korean Association of Tax Policy and the Korea Taxpayers Association in Yeouido, Seoul, on Monday. [Korean Association of Tax Policy]
Participants discuss sugar levies at the 34th Tax Policy Seminar jointly hosted by the Korean Association of Tax Policy and the Korea Taxpayers Association in Yeouido, Seoul, on Monday. [Korean Association of Tax Policy]

Amid ongoing debate over a so-called "sugar tax," a new analysis warns that a levy on sweetened beverages could place a disproportionately heavy burden on low-income households.

The Korean Association of Tax Policy and the Korea Taxpayers Association jointly hosted the 34th Tax Policy Seminar in Yeouido, Seoul, on Monday, under the theme "Introducing a Sugar Levy on Sweetened Beverages: What Must Be Considered."

Noh Jeong-ran, a professor at Myongji University who delivered the keynote presentation, shared findings from an empirical analysis of nine years of raw data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2016–2024) and a burden-incidence simulation. The analysis found that the levy burden as a share of income would be about 8.4 times higher for the lowest-income quintile than for the highest, indicating a regressive effect. A cross-analysis by age and income showed the burden would fall most heavily on low-income young adults and teenagers.

Noh also cited evidence that sugar reduction through market self-adjustment is already under way. Even without a levy, average daily per-capita consumption of sweetened beverages fell 25.6 percent — from 116.9 grams in 2016 to 87.0 grams in 2024 — and sugar's share of total sugar intake has continued to decline.

Noh warned that if the sugar levy were structured not as a tax but as a contribution to the National Health Promotion Fund — a quasi-tax — it could create a "fiscal illusion" that bypasses strict National Assembly budget oversight and avoids public resistance to taxation.

She also pointed to a structural contradiction: if consumption falls enough to achieve the health goal, fund revenue shrinks; but if revenue holds steady, the health objective has not been met. "Rather than across-the-board price regulation, the priority should be non-price, market-friendly policies — such as health education targeting teenagers and incentives for companies to voluntarily reduce sugar content," Noh said.

Kim Gap-soon, a professor at Dongguk University and president of the Korean Association of Tax Policy, echoed those concerns in his opening remarks. "Blanket price regulations such as a sugar levy, beneath their outwardly benevolent appearance, carry structural flaws — including a regressive tax burden that compounds consumption costs for low-income households and young people, and fiscal opacity that circumvents budget controls," he said. He added that because the market is already driving voluntary sugar reduction, "a non-price, market-friendly approach should take precedence over price controls."


korean@heraldcorp.com