Being penalised because the product is not unhealthy enough: this is how you could summarise the case involving the drinks company Lemonaid. What the minimum sugar content in soft drinks is all about and what the situation is like in Switzerland.
Sugar as a disease booster
Watch out: less unhealthy!
By the way: If you don't mind longer delivery times as well as too little sugar, you can also order the less sweet lemonade in our shop.
One gram too little: this almost proved fatal for the Hamburg lemonade manufacturer Lemonaid. Instead of the prescribed seven grams per 100 millilitres, its drinks only contain six grams of sugar - and, according to the German Food Codex Commission (DLMBK), are not allowed to be called lemonade. As the company did not change the name or sugar content of its drinks, a small-scale war broke out between the authorities and the brand.
The result after five years: Lemonaid can continue to sell itself as a lemonade. The DLMBK has now decided to overturn the sugar requirement. According to the new guidelines, lemonades must now only contain "ingredients to achieve a sweet flavour (e.g. types of sugar, sweeteners)". The quantity and type of these ingredients is not further regulated.
The following therefore applies not only to Lemonaid, but to all soft drinks: no minimum sugar content. And therefore no more potentially addictive substances of at least seven per cent in my drink. Can you still call that lemonade? I think so. Because the unsweetened truth is that sugar can do a lot of damage. It has long been known that long-term high consumption is linked to many serious illnesses, such as strokes, heart attacks, cancer, gout and depression, to name but a few. This has been proven by numerous studies.
A Chinese research paper from last year provides a good overview of the extent of the problem, in which the scientists involved sorted and analysed 8601 medical studies, meta-analyses and observational studies. According to the research team, "significant harmful associations between dietary sugar consumption" and various diagnoses were identified. To prevent health consequences, the scientists involved recommend not exceeding sugar consumption of 25 grams per day (around 100 grams of chocolate) and limiting the consumption of sugar-sweetened drinks such as iced tea and juices to between 200 and 350 millilitres per week.
No wonder the Food Commission has finally given in. The abolition of the minimum sugar content is long overdue. Before the old guidelines were revised, Lemonaid was urged by the DLMBK to label its deviation from the (lemonade) standard on its drinks. Suggestions included "Lemonade with 5.7% sugar, lemon-raspberry flavour" or "Lemonade, less sweet". It is true that the aim of the food directives is to protect consumers from being misled. However, the specified minimum sugar content was not in the interests of health. And a warning about too little sugar seems paradoxical.
Why did it take five years for the revision? That was also my question to the press office. A spokesperson for the Commission replied that "during the Commission's previous appointment period (2016 to 2022), an adapted draft of the guiding principles had already been drawn up by the responsible specialist committee six drinks on the basis of existing amendments." However, this draft did not receive a sufficient majority in the plenary vote and was therefore unable to prevail. The original version was therefore retained.
The proposals for the current amendment to the guiding principles were submitted as early as spring 2023, and the revision up to the published new version took until May 2024: "In such revisions, the DLMBK is bound by the procedural requirements of the rules of procedure. According to the rules of procedure, a majority of more than three quarters of the votes of all DLMBK members is required to adopt an amendment to the guiding principles." So speed is not its strong point, as it is with most German authorities.
Sugar is not just a topic in Germany. Switzerland is also dealing with it. There is no minimum sugar content. But here, too, there is a lot of sugar in food: 80 per cent of processed foods contain added sugar. The number of children suffering from obesity and type 2 diabetes is therefore increasing. However, it is proving difficult to tackle such developments with concrete measures such as stricter regulations or even clearer labelling. The sugar lobby in Switzerland is strong: just last year, two popular initiatives calling for changes to sugar in the interests of public health were rejected. A sugar tax is repeatedly discussed, but has not yet been implemented.
