Mexico’s government introduced a decree on Monday imposing tariffs of between 156% and 210% on sugar imports into the country. The tax, which will take effect on Tuesday, will affect products coming from World Trade Organization member countries. The published document stated, “The federal government is obligated to implement the necessary mechanisms that achieve stability in the national industrial sectors.”
Refined liquid sugar and invert sugar are the products most affected by the tax, with the import rate reaching 210.44%. As for the rest of the sugars, such as beets or cane sugar, they will see an increase of 156%. The current import tariff does not support the country’s agribusiness “due to the low international prices” of the product, “so it is considered necessary to adjust the established tariffs,” said CEO Claudia Sheinbaum.
The decree supports the revised Plan of Mexico, an initiative that identifies the need to strengthen national industry. He stressed that “amending tariffs constitutes a tool to protect productive sectors from distortions in international trade.”
The new tax is set to increase from 2026, with a new additional rate for zero-calorie alternatives sweetened with sweeteners. But in this Monday’s decree there are no references to this matter. The current government has also declared war on soft drinks with its 2026 economic package proposal, which expects the share of sugary drinks to increase to 3.08 pesos per liter — a significant increase compared to 1.64 this year. With this increase in sugary drinks, the executive expects to collect about 41,000 million pesos in 2026, which will be entirely allocated, they advocate, to the health budget.
This is one of the ways through which the executive authority seeks to reduce the consumption of this type of sugary product. This action was initiated due to the urgent need to stop the epidemic of obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular diseases that are plaguing Mexico and which have seen an increase in recent years. According to Inegi data for 2022 – the most recent data provided – obesity affected 13.6% of children, 16.1% of teens, and 41% of adults.
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