Soft drinks brands take up the sugar tax gauntlet with focus on innovation and premiumisation

From consumers stockpiling Irn Bru to criticisms of Ribena for “sneakily” ruining its taste by reducing sugar, soft drink brands have been on a bit of a roller coaster ever since former chancellor George Osborne unveiled the ‘sugar tax’ in 2016.
Officially called the Soft Drinks Industry Levy (SDIL), it comes into effect tomorrow (6 April) and will force soft drinks companies to pay a charge for added sugar. Under the two-band system, drinks that contain 5g of sugar or mo