Globally, alcohol consumption accounts for a substantial burden of disease, which translates into high social and economic costs. To address this burden, several policies have been implemented. 
Despite the existence of these policies evidence shows that alcohol misuse and alcohol-related harms have increased in South Africa over recent years. 
Research done on Alcohol spending  almost ten years ago shows that it was regressive between 1995 and 2011 because poorer households’ expenditure spent on alcohol beverage exceeds that for the richest households. 
However another index shows that spending on alcoholic beverages has become less regressive between the same time periods.
This study showed that no evidence that alcohol policy including taxation increased regressivity.