Manufacturers scrap 850 fizzy drinks before sugar tax kicks in

♦ Levels of sugar found in soft drinks have fallen by 15 per cent, figures show.

A report commissioned by The Grocer, a trade magazine, found that suppliers and supermarkets – including Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s and Morrisons – have already reduced the sugar levels of their drinks to avoid the effects of sugar tax, which is to be implemented next month.

Statistics show that the average sugar level fell from 5.9g per 100ml in April 2016 to 5g per 100ml in February 2018; 5g is the Government’s lower threshold for products liable for the levy.

That means for some supermarkets almost two-thirds of the soft drinks they sell will be exempt from the tax.

However, the magazine added that sugar removal had been driven by products being delisted and replaced with existing lower-sugar varieties, rather than by reformulating the higher sugar-content drinks.

Almost 850 products were delisted – four times the number that have been reformulated.

The number of branded drinks in the highest sugar levy band – for products with more than 8g per 100ml – fell from 401 to 294.