Sugar tax is working

Public Health England wants the food industry to reduce sugar in other products, in addition to sugary drinks, by 20% by 2020 but the BDA believes this voluntary requirement is not enough. Sugar content in drinks covered by the sugar tax dropped by around 28.8% between 2015 and 2018, yet the total tonnes of sugar sold in foods included in the reformulation programme has increased by 2.6%. Chair of the BDA, Mick Armstrong, said: “The sugar levy is delivering the goods. It shows hard and fast policy beats volunteerism when it comes to making the food industry change its ways. Ideology must never trump evidence when it comes to public health, sugar is fuelling both tooth decay and obesity.”
Professor Michael Escudier, dean of the Faculty of Dental Surgery at the Royal College of Surgeons, said: “The soft drinks industry levy has been successful, with sugar content in fizzy drinks reduced by an average of 28.8%. Meanwhile progress has been limited for the products covered by the voluntary sugar reduction programme. We call for the government to consider extending the soft drinks levy to cover sugary dairy drinks. Reducing children’s sugar intake is vital to tackling child tooth decay. Statistics published yesterday show tooth decay remains the leading cause of hospital admissions for five to nine-year-olds, despite being almost entirely preventable.”
Dr Alison Tedstone, chief nutritionist at PHE, said: “Encouragingly, some businesses have made good progress in reducing sugar, but some businesses and categories have made very little or none. We know the public wants the food industry to make food healthier. It is clear this can be done, but we urge the whole of the food and drink industry to keep up the momentum to help families make healthier choices.”