Lee floats idea of imposing sugar levy to support regional, public health care
President Lee Jae Myung, right, speaks during a Cabinet meeting at the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul, Tuesday. Joint Press Corps
President Lee Jae Myung on Wednesday proposed the idea of imposing a "sugar levy" to help curb sugar intake and bolster public health care funding, citing a similar levy on tobacco.
Lee made the remark on X, formerly Twitter, as he posted a news article citing a survey that showed around eight in 10 Koreans supported a sugar tax that would impose a levy on companies that use excessive amounts of sugar in their products.
"Just like cigarettes, we could curb the use of sugar through a levy on sugar and reinvest this revenue to strengthen regional and public health care ... what do you think?" Lee wrote.
According to the report, more than 120 countries are implementing sugar taxes or similar measures based on World Health Organization recommendations.
Under the National Health Promotion Act, the National Health Promotion Fund is primarily funded by tax on tobacco consumption, and is used for various anti-smoking and health care programs.