When the southern Mexican state of Oaxaca effectively outlawed sales of sugary drinks and sweets to children in 2020, the ban made international news. However, few people in the state—including some distributors and shop owners—are aware of the rule, and authorities have not enforced the potentially unpopular measure. This inaction comes despite tens of thousands of deaths annually linked to sugary beverages, as obesity and diabetes rates soar.
Oaxaca, known as Mexico's culinary capital, has the highest rate of child obesity in the country and the second highest among adults. Diets have shifted towards ultra-processed foods and sugary drinks. The ban, earmarked for implementation within a year, has seen no enforcement. Campaigners say it would face stiff opposition from industry, particularly from Femsa, which bottles Coca-Cola in Mexico and operates over 20,000 Oxxo convenience stores nationwide.
Coca-Cola is the most popular soft drink in Mexico, with billboards reading "Siente el sabor" and sponsorship of the national football team. The company's lobbying power is considered unrivalled; a former president was a regional head of the company, and ex-president Enrique Peña Nieto posed with a can bearing his name. Coca-Cola said its practice of hiring former officials was about attracting talent.
Mexico ranks fourth globally in soft drink consumption per capita, having dropped from first after a sugar tax was implemented. A 2019 documentary detailed how many heavy consumers of fizzy drinks were unaware they had type 2 diabetes. The current federal government has taken a tougher stance, with deputy health secretary Hugo López-Gatell denouncing fizzy drinks as "bottled poison" in 2020.
In 2017, the village of Yalálag banned the sale of potato chips, and during the pandemic, it extended the ban to sugary drinks for several months. However, normal stock has since returned. Former councillor Vidal Aquino, who introduced the crisp ban, warned: "The children are our future but we are going to have serious problems if we continue down this path."
