Public Health England’s study likely to accelerate calls for further measures such as sugar tax
The food industry has cut out only 3% of sugar from its supermarket, cafe and restaurant products over the last three years, according to a damning report from Public Health England that will accelerate calls for taxes or other compulsory measures to be introduced.
PHE launched its flagship sugar reduction programme in 2016 with a mission to help bring down childhood obesity by introducing a voluntary target for the food industry to remove 20% of sugar by 2020. But the third year of data – gathered before the coronavirus outbreak Covid – suggests it is unattainable without a “big stick” such as taxation.
