A SSB tax can also prompt manufacturers to reformulate sugar levels downward, as seen in the United Kingdom even before the SSB tax was introduced in April 2018. The tax started by imposing a 50% duty on sugary drinks as well as candies, pure sugar and dilutables (such as syrups). Subscribe Excess sugar consumption has been linked with increases in obesity and, as a result, the World Health Organisation recommends that people should consume less sugar. The sales shifts are principally the result of price differentials that SDIL immediately opened up between full sugar drinks (more than 8g sugar per 100ml) and levy-free no/low sugar products (less than 5g/100ml). Industry groups also argue against taxation and have influenced food policy globally, for example by funding and conducting research used to support or oppose health policies, or by becoming members of nutrition research panels that advice policy makers. This document is subject to copyright. Your email address is used only to let the recipient know who sent the email. The UK is a relative newcomer to the group of dozens of countries around the world who have decided to put taxes on sugar-sweetened drinks. In contrast, sales of full sugar Classic Coke and Blue Pepsi both fell. return vOut; But it is not just governments who should be responsible for reducing sugar consumption. It imposes a charge of 18p per litre on drinks with 5g-8g of sugar per 100ml, rising to 24p on those with 8g or above. Subscribe, By Jack Winkler, Emeritus Professor of Nutrition Policy, London Metropolitan University; and Tam Fry, chair, National Obesity Forum, 21-May-2019 You can be assured our editors closely monitor every feedback sent and will take appropriate actions. We do not guarantee individual replies due to extremely high volume of correspondence. This means customers are not alerted to the discounts available. They can also help to generate revenue and spark conversations that may lead to changes in social norms around sugar, changes that can make a big difference to the health and wellbeing of millions of people. The movement towards no/low sugar drinks is likely to continue, indeed expand. Opposition from the well resourced and powerful food and drink sector, and associated lobbyists, is a critical barrier. 100% fruit juice and diet drinks were not included. Taxes can result in profit and job losses, negatively impacting the economy. A higher rate of 24p per litre applies to drinks with more than eight grams of sugar per 100 millilitres. For Lucozade, Ribena, Suntory, which reformulated 60 products in response to the levy, its new sugarfree energy drink, Lucozade Zero, has been the most successful launch in the company's history. Despite the success of the sugar tax and the 2.9% cut in sugar due to reformulating foods - we are still eating more of the stuff. The report was well received by sugar tax campaigners such as Action on Sugar and celebrity chef Jamie Oliver. In July 2015 the British Medical Association (BMA) urged the governmentto introduce a 20 per cent tax on sugar, saying it would combat escalating rates of obesity and type 2 diabetes. Fruit and vegetable juices are exempt from the levy provided they do not contain added sugar, as are milks and milk substitute drinks … The Soft Drink Industry Levy (SDIL) came into effect in April last year, as a tax on beverages with more than 5g sugar per 100ml. By using our site, you acknowledge that you have read and understand our Privacy Policy And it has also pushed consumers towards low or zero sugar products. var reg = new RegExp('\\W+', "g"); 21-May-2019 at 15:29 GMT. These … Click here to sign in with Sales of Lucozade Energy are up 5%, Lucozade Sport up by 14% and Ribena Light up 6% since the sugar tax was introduced. vOut += aTags[i].trim().replace(reg, '-').substring(0,40); function sanitize_gpt_value2(gptValue) dataLayer.push(dataLayerNews); dataLayerNews.related_tags = sanitize_gpt_value2("sugar tax, Uk"); Pushing up the price of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) across Britain, the sugar levy came about following increased … “That means less sugar … AG Barr's iconic Irn Bru currently comes in two new sugarfree variants, as well as the reformulated, lower-sugar version of the original product. Related tags: In the UK, obesity is estimated to affect around 1 in every 4 adults and around 1 in every 5 children aged 10 to 11, with higher rates among those living in more deprived areas. In 2018, the UK became one of the latest countries to implement a tax on sugary drinks. But the balance of sugarfree-to-sugared rose to 60-40% for Coca-Cola, to 83-17% for Pepsi. Sugary drinks, such as carbonated soft drinks, sports drinks and energy drinks, are one of the major sources of dietary sugar, especially for children and adolescents. And the increased accessibility of many new sugarfree products should have a further impact on the sales balance in future years. In April 2019, the duty increased to 75%, and the tax was widened to chocolate and cocoa preparations containing added sugar. What is different over the past year is that new sugarfree variants of popular drinks, produced in response to the levy, have gained distribution in major retailers. vOut +=', '; One factor limiting the shift towards reformulated drinks is the erratic price marking of the different options on shelves. But, that said, the sugar content of non-taxed drinks such as milkshakes and non-taxed sweet snacks such as biscuits and cakes remains high. if(i!=(aTags.length-1)) Regulation & Safety, Every time a consumer changes from a 500ml bottle of Classic or Blue to an equivalent bottle of Zero or Max, there is a reduction of over 200kcal. Professor Dame Sally Davies, who was the Chief Medical Officer for England up to September 2019, also calls for free water refills and water fountains to be available in public places and food and drink retail sites to help reduce … Your opinions are important to us. for (var i=0; i < aTags.length; i++) Indeed, a team of researchers at Queen Mary University of London found that 97% of cakes and 74% of biscuits contain unnecessary amounts of sugar. All eight supermarket groups we surveyed stock these new energy drinks, the majority carry four or five sugarfree brands. Neither your address nor the recipient's address will be used for any other purpose. sugar tax, Uk Read the original article. Taxation is "regressive" meaning that it affects lower socioeconomic groups more than those in higher socioeconomic groups. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no So they have become a key target for sugar reduction—but more still needs to be done. Retailers, for example, could reduce the promotion of high sugar products in favor of healthier alternatives. The changed sales figures show that discounts have had the effect that economists expected and health specialists hoped for. Less expectedly, virtually all major brands of energy drinks have also introduced sugarfree variants. Schools are to get £415 million from the soft drinks industry levy to help pupils benefit from healthier, more active lifestyles, Justine Greening has announced.. And this is leading to a dual burden of malnutrition and obesity, when a population has both too much food and not enough of the right foods. But unlike most other taxes that simply increase the price of products, the UK Soft Drink Industry Levy works by encouraging soft drink manufacturers to reformulate and reduce the sugar content of their products. Health and Wellness, Free newsletter Soft Drinks & Water, Initial results suggest such taxes have the potential to reduce consumption of sugar and so may help to reduce obesity, diabetes and dental decay in the future. We have just completed an enlarged range of shop surveys in supermarkets, pharmacies, takeaway food multiples and independents, to measure the effects of SDIL after one year. But … This report includes a detailed assessment of progress by the food industry, between 2015 and 2019, towards meeting the 20% reduction ambition by 2020 for the sugar reduction programme. We recommend initial rates that are equal to those of the UK tax on SSBs. dataLayerNews = {}; In the UK, high sugar snacks, such as biscuits, cakes, chocolates and sweets make up more free sugar and energy intake than sugary drinks. Sugary drink taxes have the potential to reduce sugar consumption. Thank you for taking your time to send in your valued opinion to Science X editors. Copyright - Unless otherwise stated all contents of this web site are © 2021 - William Reed Business Media Ltd - All Rights Reserved - Full details for the use of materials on this site can be found in the Terms & Conditions, Related topics: Obesity is increasing most rapidly in low and middle income communities. And in the longer term, especially if combined with "snack taxes," may also help to reduce obesity and diabetes—as supported by a recent study published in the British Medical Journal. You can unsubscribe at any time and we'll never share your details to third parties. vOut = vOut.toLowerCase(); }); For Coca-Cola, market leader in the UK, volume purchases of Coke Zero Sugar increased 50% over the past year. A sugar tax on soft drinks has now been in operation in the UK for more than a year and results so far seem to indicate it's working. For 11-18 year olds, girls were estimated to consume 22.4 kcal/day (20.3 to 24.6) less from sugar and boys estimated to consume 28.2 kcal/day less (25.2 to 31.3), or an equivalent of 6.3% (5.9% to 6.8%) and 6.4% (5.9% to 6.9%) of baseline … A 2019 study in the Quarterly Journal of Economics estimated that the optimal sugar drink tax on the federal level in the U.S. would be between 1 and 2.1 cents per ounce, whereas the optimal tax on the city-level was 60% lower than that due to cross-border shopping. Thus, SDIL met the principle of the World Health Organization, "...taxation of sugar-sweetened beverages...needs to induce a consumer price preference for beverages with a lower content of free sugars, to ensure healthy diets". The so-called sugar tax came into effect in April 2018. Actions such as better labeling and the restriction of junk food advertising can make a difference. The UK has one of the highest obesity rates among developed countries and soft drinks are still the biggest source of sugar in children’s diets. Norway has had a sugar tax since 1922 and more recently has created separate taxes for confectionary and sugary drinks. No longer just sugarfree Red Bull, now also no sugar versions of Lucozade, Monster, Relentless, Rockstar, Emerge, Boost, and Carabao are gaining shelf space in an already crowded category -- with Big Brother, sugarfree Coca-Cola Energy, just entering the market. UK news UK news home ... 2 January 2019 • 12:01am. ... March 2019. “Our Sugar Tax is even more effective than hoped,” tweeted George Osborne, the former finance minister, noting the latest product changes. This site uses cookies to assist with navigation, analyse your use of our services, and provide content from third parties. Science X Daily and the Weekly Email Newsletter are free features that allow you to receive your favorite sci-tech news updates in your email inbox, tobacco industry against tobacco taxation, Snack tax may be more effective than a sugary drink tax to tackle obesity, Using a smartwatch to help detect the progression of Parkinson's disease, Drugging the undruggable, improbable new targets for lung cancer therapy, Study identifies brain areas that support social semantic accumulation, Eating saturated fats found to reduce severity of pancreatitis, Researchers find antibodies in placentas of pregnant women infected with COVID-19, Obesity is a condition of individual responsibility, so education and increased. { The content is provided for information purposes only. In the UK… Cutting sugar in soft drinks will not, by itself, cure the nation's health problems, but it has got a key government nutrition policy, the Childhood Obesity Plan, off to a rapid start. Discounts continue at roughly the same level as before. A sugar tax on soft drinks has now been in operation in the UK for more than a year and results so far seem to indicate it’s working. The number of people living with obesity has almost tripled over the past 40 years—and continues to rise. These initiatives have resulted in a reduction of sugar in some products (showing that it is possible) but almost no change in others, highlighting the limitations of voluntary industry self regulation. Their arguments against taxation include: These arguments, which are targeted both at the government and the public, are similar to those used by the tobacco industry against tobacco taxation. C.H. Companies must … var aTags = gptValue.split(','); Ultimately, this is a societal problem and so it needs a societal solution. "There's a big debate in society about health and about sugar … A recently published Public Health England report highlighted how the UK levy has indeed resulted in reductions in the sugar content of sugary drinks—a 29% reduction per 100ml in retailer own-brand and manufacturer-branded products. UK sugar tax: Historic sales shift to sugar-free By Jack Winkler, Emeritus Professor of Nutrition Policy, London Metropolitan University; and Tam Fry, chair, National Obesity Forum 21-May-2019 - Last updated on 21-May-2019 at 15:29 GMT Wed 20 Nov 2019 08.56 EST. Sign up to our free newsletter and get the latest news sent direct to your inbox. The UK Treasury department, which originally estimated it would gain £500 million in revenue from the tax, has said that more than 50% of manufacturers have already changed their formulas to cut sugar and so will not need to pay the levy. or, by Gemma Bridge, The Conversation. The information you enter will appear in your e-mail message and is not retained by Medical Xpress in any form. Not just in small independents, but also in supermarkets and takeaway multiples, price tickets on shelves are sometimes missing. The consumption of free sugars in the UK is more than double the guideline intake for adults and close to triple for children, with soft drinks representing a significant proportion. But the controversies over sugar are stimulating development of many new substitute ingredients, from "natural" sweeteners like stevia to lower-calorie versions of sugar itself. ... A pudding tax could work in a similar way to the 'sugar tax' on soft drinks which was introduced last year and placed a … Such taxes have been implemented in 28 countries and 12 cities as of 2019. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. This means that consumers do not have to change their purchase habits to benefit from reduced sugar consumption. 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