BITTERSWEET
How the sugar tax has affected the taste of your favourite fizzy drink
Find out how much fizzy drinks have canned the sugar levels - and which ones have gone up in price
A NEW sugar tax for fizzy and soft drinks has prompted lots of big brands to change their recipes.
More than half of all soft drinks have been changed to lower their sugar content, as the government introduces a new sugar tax to help tackle the UK’s growing obesity crisis.
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Under the new rules which come in today, drinks with at least 8g of sugar per 100ml will cost 24p a litre more, falling to 18p for those with 5g to 8g per 100ml.
Shoppers will be stung for more once VAT at 20 per cent is added.
Fizz with less than 5g of sugar per 100ml will not go up in price.
Popular drinks including Fanta Orange, Sprite, Dr Pepper, Lucozade, Vimto and Ribena have all changed their recipes in order to avoid the levy.
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But Coca-Cola and Pepsi will cost more after bosses decided not to change their recipes for fear of upsetting customers.
The cost will be passed on to retailers and customers.
Wetherspoon chairman Tim Martin said prices on soft drinks in pubs would increase by about 10p as a result of the tax.
Which drinks have changed to avoid the sugar tax?
Last year, Lucozade sparked fury with customers after changing its recipe to contain less sugar.
It has gone down from 13g per 100ml to 4.5g, avoiding the new tax.
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A can of Fanta now has 33 per cent less sugar, down from 6.9g per 100ml to 4.6 per 100ml
Sprite has dropped to 3.3g per 100ml, down from 6.6g.
While Dr Pepper has dropped from 7.2g per 100ml to 4.9g.
Old Jamaica Ginger beer has dropped its sugar content from 15.2p per 100ml to 4.9g.
Vimto has dropped from 9.1g to 4.6g per 100ml.
It now contains 4.7 grams of sugar, down from 10.3 grams.
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Back in 2015, Robinsons discontinued its classic green bottle topped squash for its "no added sugar" drinks, with blue lids.
Ribena dropped from 10g per 100ml to 4.6g last month, with some fans claiming it now tastes like "drain cleaner".
Which drinks have changed due to the tax but may still go up in price?
A can of 7-UP has gone from 10g per 100ml down to 7g per 100ml, so it may go up in price.
Which drinks have not changed and have they gone up in price?
Pepsi, Coca-Cola, Britvic tonic and Lilt have all refrained from changing their recipes.
Coca-Cola and Pepsi are in the higher tax bracket, as they have 10.6 and 11g of sugar per 100ml.
While Britvic tonic has 5.8g per 100ml meaning it is in the lower sugar tax bracket.
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While Lilt, which changed its recipe in 2003, has 4.6g per 100ml and has avoided the tax entirely.
Coca-Cola is offering new bottle and can sizes to peg prices, including a 250ml can for 70p. A traditional 330ml-size tin will cost 10p extra.
Coke will also sell 1.5-litre bottles instead of 1.75-litre, meaning a price rise of 20p instead of 36p.
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