Tesco to axe drinks with added sugar
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- Published: Wednesday, 29 July 2015 18:29
- Written by News Editor
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Tesco has said that it will axe drinks with added sugar from their stores in the hope that it will cut down on childhood obesity. The drinks include favourites and best-sellers, such as Capri Sun, Ribena and Rubicon. However the BDA has said: “we’ll need more than gestures to end UK sugar addiction”
These drinks will be replaced with no-added-sugar alternatives from the beginning of September, as children return to school after the summer holidays. Tesco's soft drinks buying manager David Beardmore told the trade magazine, The Grocer, “This is part of our 10-point plan against obesity and we have decided that from September we will only sell no-added-sugar drinks in the kids' juice category. Most of the suppliers are supportive of it and understand what we are doing.”
The Tesco initiative has been welcomed by health campaigners, including Professor Graham MacGregor, chairman of Action on Sugar, who told The Grocer that other supermarket chains should follow suit. But not everyone applauds the move. Sugary drinks lovers have taken to social media including Twitter to protest, some accusing Tesco of removing consumer choice whilst others add that the supermarket will still be serving Coke and similar drinks.
Mick Armstrong, Chair of the British Dental Association: “Finally we’re seeing big retailers waking up to the sugar crisis. That’s progress, but these symbolic gestures should not disguise the fact supermarkets are still banking on the nation’s sweet tooth. The recent obituaries for Capri Sun, Ribena or Percy Pigs are designed first and foremost to fill up column inches and twitter feeds. PR stunts should not blind government, parents or health practitioners to the need for real, co-ordinated action to address Britain’s addiction to sugar. Tooth decay is the leading cause of hospital admissions among young children, and that won’t be solved by sacrificial lambs offered up in the name of corporate social responsibility.”
Last year, Tesco also banned chocolate and sweets from being sold at its checkouts, however, some stores were seen replacing them with equally unhealthy snacks, such as salty crisps.
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