date:Jan 31, 2013
More than 60 organisations, including the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, are backing the recommendation by food and farming charity Sustain.
They say it would raise 1bn a year in duty to fund free fruit and meals in schools to improve children's health.
The soft drinks industry says raising taxation is unnecessary.
The British Soft Drink Association (BSDA) says companies are already playing their part in the fight against obesity.
The BSDA's director general Gavin Partington