Sugar tax will not tackle obesity, according to the Irish Beverage Council
“Taxing one ingredient in some sugary drinks, but not all sugary drinks, will not combat the complex
challenge of obesity’’ Colm Jordan, Director of the IBC said.
The Irish Beverage Council, the Ibec group that represents soft drinks companies said that the
Department of Health’s own assessment found no conclusive evidence a tax will impact population
weight. We are committed to working with Government on solutions that deliver real public health
benefits.
“We’ve been offering low-sugar drinks for 30 years. We will continue to reduce sugar content and
increase our no-sugar / low-sugar offering to reflect consumer taste and choice’’ Jordan said.
Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe announced a tax based on grams of sugar in fizzy drinks in
yesterday’s budget, consistent with Uk’s, which was introduced in March 2016.
The new sugar tax will be implemented from April 2018. An increase in price of 30c per litre on
drinks with over 8 grams of sugar per 100 ml and 20 pc per litre on drinks with between 5 and 8 grams of sugar per 100ml.
The UK government announced that a tax on sugary soft drinks would be introduced in the UK from
2018. It is estimated to raise around £520 million a year, which will be spent on increasing funding
sport in primary schools.