The Food and Beverages Association Ghana (FABAG) has issued a urgent plea to Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, calling for the immediate removal of the controversial Excise Tax on locally produced fruit juices and sweetened beverages, alongside other levies branded as “nuisance taxes” inherited from the previous administration.

The group argues that these fiscal policies, introduced under the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government, have stifled domestic manufacturing, eroded revenue, and jeopardized jobs.

In a strongly worded statement, FABAG highlighted the devastating ripple effects of the Excise Duty (Amendments) Act 2023 (Act 1093), which imposed new taxes on sweetened drinks and fruit juices. According to the association, local producers have faced a staggering 50% plunge in sales since the tax took effect, coupled with shrinking working capital and diminished competitiveness in international markets. The tax, they claim, has backfired on government revenue goals. “Net revenue generated has reduced, not increased,” FABAG asserted, adding that the policy has “crippled” an industry already buckling under a deluge of existing taxes.

The appeal comes as Ghana’s Mahama administration prepares its first budget, with FABAG urging policymakers to prioritize tax reforms that revive local production. The group emphasized that scrapping the excise levy would not only ease financial strain on manufacturers but also paradoxically boost government income by stimulating economic activity. “This tax is a lose-lose for Ghana,” the statement read. “It’s killing businesses, jobs, and the very revenue streams it aimed to grow.”

FABAG’s push underscores broader tensions over Ghana’s tax landscape, where businesses frequently decry complex, overlapping levies that deter investment. The excise tax on beverages, critics argue, exemplifies a pattern of short-sighted fiscal measures that undermine industrial growth. With local producers struggling to compete against imported alternatives—often untaxed or subsidized abroad—the association warned of a looming collapse in Ghana’s agro-processing sector unless urgent reforms are enacted.

As the Finance Ministry weighs its options, industry stakeholders await signals of relief. For now, the debate over “nuisance taxes” remains a flashpoint in Ghana’s economic recovery efforts, balancing austerity against the survival of homegrown enterprises.

Below is the full statement…

REMOVE EXCISE TAX ON FRUIT JUICES AND OTHER NUISANCE TAXES TO BOOST LOCAL PRODUCTION AND TAX REVENUE -FABAG

The Food and Beverages Association Ghana (FABAG), would like to appeal to the Honourable Minister of Finance and for that matter the government to remove the Excise Tax on fruit juices and other nuisance taxes that were introduced by the NPP government. The removal of these taxes in the Government’s first budget statement is very key to boosting domestic production and increased revenue mobilization by the GRA.

The introduction and imposition of the obnoxious EXCISE tax on sweetened and fruit drinks under Excise Duty (Amendments) Act 2023 (Act 1093) especially on locally produced fruit juices and sweetened beverages has had a devastating negative effect on local manufacturing with a multiplier effect on employment levels, sales turnover, working capital and international market competitiveness of Ghanaian fruit juices and sweetened beverages.

A brief Cost-benefit analysis of the Excise Duty by FABAG on domestic industry capacity and productivity since its introduction indicates that the government and for that matter the Ghanaian economy has lost so much since its introduction. Sales have dropped by over 50% . Net revenue generated to government has in fact reduced and not increased. The local industry has severely been crippled since the introduction of this Excise Tax more especially as the local industry is already overburdened with an avalanche of taxes.

Currently, manufacturers pay the following taxes on their raw materials for production:

1. Import Duty,
2.Import VAT,
3.Ecowas Levy,
4. Network Charge, Network Charge VAT, Network Charge COVID-19 Health,
5. Ghana Shippers Authority SNF Fee,
6. Import NHIL, Network Charge NHIL,
7. GHS Disinfection Fee,
8 MoTI-IDF Fee,
9. Special Import Levy,
10. Ghana Export-Import Bank (EXIM) Levy,
11. Ghana Education Trust (GET) Fund Import,
12. Network Charge GET Fund Levy,
13. Inspection Fee,
14. African Union Import Levy
15. COVID-19 Health Recovery Levy. The 15% VAT on sales cannot be ignored in this argument.
16. Container fumigation fees at the Port.

All these taxes are already stifling the survival, competitiveness, growth and sustainability of the domestic fruit juices industry.

Indeed, the Ghanaian manufacturing sector of this industry is faced with extra ordinary high taxes which hinder competitive production and distribution. Investors in the industry are constantly faced with the challenge of wasted/ idle investment capacity, gradually wading into investment waste without any hope for the future and this has consequently led to (1) forced labour retrenchment; 2. High cost of product in the face of external market ( export) opportunities; 3. Inability to compete with imported products of similar type and content because of very collapsing tax regime.

FABAG sincerely believes that the immediate reversal of this Excise Tax will ease the current burden on the domestic manufacturing fruit juices industry and kick start growth and development in that sector with its attendant benefits such as increased revenue for the government through high sales volume of players in the sector, increased employment and consequently high PAYE and SSNIT payments, increased payment of withholding taxes, corporate income tax, VAT and related taxes.

We are keen in supporting the government achieve its key objectives and targets for the year and beyond.

Counting on your full understanding of the current predicament of the local fruit juices manufacturing sector and reverse this tax in your first budget statement.

Thank you.