What you need to know

Milkshakes and lattes are set to be included in the UK’s government sugar tax scheme for the first time, in a new bid to tackle obesity.

The sugar tax, known officially as the Soft Drinks Industry Levy (SDIL), is a tax on pre-packaged drinks such as those sold in cans and cartons in supermarkets.

The extension of the sugar tax to milk-based drinks is expected to take place from April 2028.

The government says companies making these drinks will have to reduce the amount of sugar they contain or face paying the tax.

This means they could either taste different (less sweet) or cost a little more.

This tax was introduced by the Conservative government in April 2018 with the aim of making diets healthier and fighting obesity, by reducing sugar consumption.

The sugar tax applies to pre-packaged soft drinks with added sugar.

It already applies to most carbonated and sugary drinks sold in cans, bottles and cartons in supermarkets.

Soon, it could also apply to prepackaged sugary milk drinks sold in supermarkets, such as milkshakes and lattes.

Milk-based drinks have been exempted from the sugar tax because they contain calcium, which is encouraged in the diets of children and young people.

However, the high sugar content of some milk-based drinks is forcing the government to reconsider this exemption.

The Government has been consulting on the introduction of a ‘lactose allowance’ to account for the natural sugars in the milk of these drinks.

All milk substitute drinks, such as soy, almond or oat drinks, were previously exempt from the sugar tax if they contained 120 mg of calcium per 100 ml.

But if these drinks contain added sugars beyond those derived from the main ingredient, they would now be taxed.

The sugar tax does not apply to drinks prepared and served in cafes, restaurants and bars. Coffees, lattes and other milk drinks prepared on café premises would therefore not be subject to this tax.

Soft drinks made only with natural sugars, such as cow’s milk and pure fruit juice, are also not part of the tax.

Non-alcoholic beer or wine, infant formula, drinks sold in powder form and cocktails or mocktails served in an open container also do not fall within the scope of the sugar tax.

Currently the tax is charged at 18p per liter on drinks containing at least 5g of total sugar per 100ml, and 24p per liter on drinks containing 8g of sugar or more.

But the government is considering reducing the maximum amount of sugar allowed in drinks from 5g to 4g per 100ml.

To date, this has resulted in a 46% reduction in sugar content in affected soft drinks, the government says.

Nearly 90% of the market now contains less sugar than the level at which the tax applies.

But experts say there is still too much sugar in the British diet.

Free sugars should make up no more than 5% of daily energy intake, according to current UK advice.

But the amount of sugar consumed in the UK is around double. And obesity rates among children and adults show no signs of falling either, with almost two thirds of people in the UK overweight or obese.

This is what pushed the government to revise the tax and extend it to milk-based drinks.