Paving the way to a sugar-sweetened beverages tax in Estonia

One in three children in Estonia aged 6–13 is overweight or obese. Pricing policies, including the taxation of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs), has been recommended by WHO as one policy measure that can lower the consumption of SSBs and reduce obesity and the burden of obesity-related diseases. 89.2% of Estonian school children drink SSBs and it is known that the average daily energy consumption of school children who consumed SSBs was higher than those who did not. The consumption of SSBs is associated with increased energy intake, higher risks for poor oral health, weight gain and increased risks for various noncommunicable diseases. Therefore, Estonia is planning to reduce the consumption of SSBs through implementing a series of measures, including trying to establish a tax on SSBs. The WHO Regional Office for Europe was providing policy advice and technical assistance to Estonia in order to improve and strengthen the actions planned to tackle the problem. This article describes: the tools and activities that opened the door for discussions about the taxation of SSBs in Estonia; the subsequent adoption of the law proposing a three-tiered tax scheme on SSBs by the Government and Parliament until the President decided not to announce the tax and returned it to Parliament; as well as lessons learned from this process.