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  • Writer's pictureSarah Skelton

Do you understand the 'sugar tax'?

SDIL - Soft Drinks Industry Levy


“ On Friday 6th April 2018 a tax (SDIL) commonly known as the ‘sugar tax’ was introduced in the aim to help reduce obesity especially in the younger generation. ”


How much is the sugar tax costing the producers?

(NB this is this is based on the diluted serving where appropriate and the levy is paid by the producer, which in many cases has and will continue to increase the cost to the consumer.)

18p per litre on drinks that have a total sugar content of more than 5g and less than 8g per 100ml

24p per litre on drinks that have a total sugar content of 8g or more per 100ml


How much sugar do popular soft drinks contain?

Coke 35g in a 330ml can Coca-Cola classic – 11 ½ sugar cubes

Pepsi 36g per 330 ml can of Pepsi – 12 sugar cubes

Fanta 15g per 330 ml can of Fanta Orange – 5 sugar cubes

RedBull 27g per 250 ml can of Red Bull Energy Drink – 9 sugar cubes

What is the recommended level of sugar?

Added sugars shouldn't make up more than 5% of a person's calorie intake from food and drink each day, this is about 30g of sugar a day for those aged 11 and over.

Which drinks are liable for the sugar tax

  • it has had sugar added during production, or anything (other than fruit juice, vegetable juice and milk) that contains sugar, such as honey

  • it contains at least 5 grams (g) of sugar per 100 millilitres (ml) in its ready to drink or diluted form. If it’s either ready to drink, or to be drunk it must be diluted with water, mixed with crushed ice or processed to make crushed ice, mixed with carbon dioxide, or a combination of these. If it’s bottled, canned or otherwise packaged so it’s ready to drink or be diluted

  • it has a content of 1.2% alcohol by volume (ABV) or less


What’s classed as sugar

For the purposes of the sugar tax, sugar includes (but isn’t limited to):

  • sucrose

  • glucose

  • fructose

  • lactose

  • galactose

It doesn’t include sugar replacements, like:

  • stevia

  • aspartame

  • sucralose

  • erythritol


Drinks that aren’t liable for the sugar tax.

The levy doesn’t apply to drinks that are:

  • at least 75% milk

  • a milk replacement, like soya or almond milk

  • an alcohol replacement, like de-alcoholised beer or wine

  • made with fruit juice or vegetable juice and don’t have any other added sugar

  • liquid drink flavouring that’s added to food or drinks like coffee or cocktails

  • sold as a powder

  • prepared by mixing liquids and served in an open container, like cocktails

  • infant formula, follow on formula or baby foods

  • formulated food intended as a total diet replacement, or dietary food used for special medical purposes


Milk and milk based drinks

For your drink to be classed as milk or a milk based drink, it must contain at least 75ml of milk per 100ml of prepared drink.

For the purposes of the sugar tax, types of milk include:

  • milk from an animal

  • reconstituted or recombined milk

  • fermented milk

  • buttermilk

  • whey

  • reconstituted or recombined whey

Cream isn’t included in the definition of milk.

Milk replacement drinks

For your drink to be classed as a milk replacement drink, it must:

  • contain at least 120 milligrams of calcium per 100ml

  • be derived from legumes, cereals, nuts, seeds or another type of plant

  • have all or most of the same uses as milk

  • have a consistency similar to milk

  • not be carbonated

  • the drink isn’t diluted or mixed with anything else, apart from anything that’s been dissolved into the drink through distillation

What’s classed as fruit juice

  • For the purposes of the levy, fruit juice includes (but isn’t limited to):

  • fruit puree

  • dehydrated fruit juice

  • powdered fruit juice

  • It doesn’t include de-ionised fruit juice or juice drinks with added sugar.

Ref Gov.co.uk #weightloss #health #slimming #sugartax #sugar

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