Obesity and soda consumption were the predominant frames for the policy problem emerging from the data. The ‘obesity problem’ was framed by most interviewees either as a result of an addiction to food or as a lack of conscious eating, and the arguments focused on it being a personal, behavioural issue rather than a public problem. ‘Soda consumption’ was framed as a problem that was ‘difficult’ to solve (Section III). Other actors focused more on the multi-causality of obesity in contrast to singling out products like soda. This debate was used both negatively and positively toward the soda tax as a solution.
The other main framing was the issue of government finances. Only a few actors mentioned revenue generation as the objective of the policy, as a member of the MoF pointed out:
It [the soda tax] implementation had to do with the fact that the President liked it, because it is a very good way to increase revenue.
(CSM)
It was only after the Fiscal Reform, which also contained other taxes such as those on pet food and gasoline, that the framing of the soda tax as a solution to the government’s lack of funds was commonly observed in documents, media and publications (Cozo & Cozo, 2006). These different frames found around the
‘problem’ or ‘policy problem’ are explained further in the next sections.
Framing the determinants of obesity
The determinants of obesity were commonly framed as a personal choice or as individual behaviours influenced by certain environmental factors both among the actors interviewed or in reports published by their organisations (ANPRAC, 2016;
Chapa-Cantú, Flores-Curiel, & Zúñiga-Valero, 2015). For example, a report prepared in 2015 by the UNAL, which was sponsored by the soda industry, emphasises personal lifestyle factors:
Obesity is a multifactorial problem involving feeding habits, lifestyle, genes and physical exercise, among others. […] Lack of exercise and the availability of food in abundance are considered the two main causes of obesity. However, there are other factors that contribute to obesity, such as reduced sleep times, changes in room temperature (through the use of air conditioners), reduced cigarette consumption, increased use of medications (antidepressants), among many other things. (Chapa-Cantú, 2015, pp. 26)
In contrast, the ANM’s academic group, which was a strong supporter of the soda tax, highlighted the role of excessive consumption of foods with high energy density, high consumption of caloric beverages, low consumption of fruits and vegetables and low physical activity as key determinants of obesity. In their book the ANM refers to research showing that 21% of the rural areas studied in Mexico did not have fruits available for sale on a regular basis, and 13% did not have vegetables available (Rivera Dommarco, Perichart, & Moreno, 2012, p. 7). The book also emphasized the high availability of foods that were high in fats and sugars and SSB available in the same areas (Rivera-Dommarco et al., 2013, p. 2). These examples highlight the framing used to demonstrate that availability of foods plays an important role in the population’s diet. This frame is consistent with the frames used by public health researchers (Ghosh-Dastidar et al., 2014) and those used by the civil society when calling upon the government to act by improving access to water and healthy food in their manifesto (Alianza por la Salud Alimentaria, 2012b).
Framing soda consumption as a problem
It was a common belief among interviewed actors that soda consumption was a problem, regardless of their background, as indicated by the quotes in Figure 6.1.
Most actors interviewed perceived soft drinks as a commodity affecting health.
Figure 6.1 Perception and frames to describe the ‘soda consumption’ problem in Mexico
Actor Quote
Civil society In Mexico, it [soda consumption] is a big problem, there are many factors to explain why, but one of them is soda consumption, [it is]
higher than in any other country.
Legislator Mexico is the number one soda consumer per capita per year, with 167 litres per person per year
Academic Well, soda consumption in Mexico is high and it is very harmful, we are a society of high consumption
Ministry of Health
The problem is not having one sweetened beverage, the problem is the amount and frequency of consumption
Frames about the determinants of soda consumption were around personal choices, access to water, addiction to these beverages and the social construction of soda being a reward and a desirable thing to purchase. For example, an academic mentioned:
When the only reward we can afford is soda, well we have problems […]. Food and sodas are the safest way to please ourselves when resources are limited. (ACA)
Moreover, the cultural meaning soda has for Mexicans was a common frame in interviewees’ accounts. Nevertheless, the roots of this behaviour are not well understood or described in the accounts. The next section describes findings around this frame.
The cultural meaning of drinking soda
In addition to issues of soda availability and personal choice, most interviewees regardless of background, believed that soda has a deep cultural meaning and that drinking soda has an emotional value for Mexicans. In small indigenous towns, advertising for soda even merges with state signs and religious rituals, and soda has replaced locally produced drinks or water as the primary source of hydration, as one interviewee mentioned:
When you go to small indigenous communities, you can see soda producers advertising everywhere, the sign with the name of the community has the logo of Coca-Cola on it [...]. Marketing has overtaken them [traditional foods], junk food and soda ads are everywhere […], people want to drink what everybody else in the city drinks, that is, soda and sugary drinks. (CSM)
Some interviewees believed that Mexicans value soda more than other food commodities. People drink soda for all meals including breakfast, and it is considered an act of kindness to offer visitors a glass of soda. As a government official pointed out:
In some areas, people value Coca-Cola more than food; they buy 2.5 litres and some chips, instead of any other thing. They would rather buy that than beans. (LEG)
Although this argument could be seen as a stigmatized framing of the behaviour among low income populations, it exemplifies how a set of values is assigned to sodas. This finding also concurs with previous research on this topic, which indicates that people drink soda regardless of whether it is recognised as a drink which is bad for the health of adults and children (Theodore et al., 2011). In some circumstances such as smoking, decisions about a type of behaviour are guided only by the perceived short-term benefits, without taking into account the damage to health that this decision can cause in the long term (Lujic, Reuter, & Netter, 2005).
This is also seen in the meaning of drinking soda, which has gone beyond rationalising its consumption as an unhealthy drink. Drinking soda has an emotional value, and this can be compared with the arguments that have been made about the cultural and emotional value attached by some to smoking cigarettes (Ashton & Golding, 1989; Dallman, 2010). Beliefs about soda being a symbol of belonging, of status and of satisfaction emerged in the interviews. As an academic mentioned:
[The reasoning is if] I don’t have any other means to have joy in my own home, I use food or [sugary] beverages to fulfil this lack of
satisfaction […]. [Soda is] much safer than alcohol […], and it is safer than tobacco […]. This behaviour is likely to be a result of an addiction.
(ACA)
Furthermore, the shift from consuming traditional drinks to consuming industrialized sugary drinks and sodas has been framed as a personal preference, as a way ‘to belong to this world’ (CSO interviewee) and as a result of exposure to soda producers’ marketing strategies (CSO interviewee). In some cases, it has also been framed as a result of soda producers’ expansion into areas where they have government concessions to use and exploit water springs regardless of local communities’ opposition, as in the case of Chiapas State (Merbert, 2015, p. 175). The presence of the company in poor communities was framed as an opportunity for local people to gain employment and improve the economy of the state (Coca-Cola Foundation, 2014b), and not as a factor that shifted the availability of drinks and affected choices. Some academics mentioned that local presence of the brand, local marketing and local involvement in SRA is a way to use a frame for strategic marketing (Merbert, 2015, p. 175).
The ‘happiness’ frame: filling the void
Food and beverage producers producing soda are aware of the cultural meaning these beverages have in Mexico. Therefore, their marketing strategies are related to the emotional side of people rather than pointing out its nutritional values. Some examples include the Coca-Cola Foundation’s ‘Skipping to Happiness Program 2016’
(Coca-Cola FEMSA, 2015a) in Mexico, and the ‘A Little Happiness Every Day’ and
‘Open Happiness’ worldwide campaigns (Taylor, 2016). Emphasizing feelings and happiness to position their product was the frame picked by the F&BI to reach a population that was increasingly aware of the obesity problem. Some of the strategies were used nationally by the F&BI to influence the policy debate, as described in Chapter 8.