Sugar tax extended to milk-based drinks: What you need to know
The sugar tax, formally known as the soft drinks industry levy (SDIL), is a tax on pre-packaged drinks such as those sold in cans and cartons in supermarkets.
How will it work?
Extending the sugar tax to milk-based drinks will happen from 1 January 2028. The government says companies which make these drinks will have to reduce the sugar they contain or face paying the tax. That means the drinks affected could either taste different (less sugary) or cost a bit more. The tax was introduced as a means to make diets healthier and tackle obesity, by cutting sugar intake.
What drinks are included?
The sugar tax applies to pre-packaged soft drinks with added sugar. It already applies to most sugary and fizzy soft drinks sold in cans, bottles and cartons in supermarkets. It will now also apply to pre-packaged milk-based drinks with added sugar such as bottled milkshakes and coffee drinks. It will also now cover milk substitutes - plant-based drinks like soya, oat and rice milks with added sugar. Milk-based drinks have been exempt from the sugar tax because they contain calcium, which is encouraged in children and young people's diets. However, the high sugar content of some milk-based drinks means the government has removed that exemption.
What impact has the sugar tax had?
To date, it's led to a 46% reduction in the sugar contained in soft drinks affected, the government says. Nearly 90% of the market now contains less sugar than the level at which the tax applies. But experts say there is still too much sugar in UK diets. Free sugars should account for no more than 5% of daily energy intake, current UK advice says. But the amount of sugar consumed in the UK is around double that. And obesity rates in children and adults show no signs of going down either, with nearly two-thirds of people in the UK overweight or obese. This is what has prompted the government to carry out a review of the tax and extend it to milk-based drinks.
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