(Finance) – It’s a Bitter Christmas what lies ahead for i producers of chinotti, cedrate, orangeade and the entire supply chain who, despite the united appeal from the agricultural, industrial, commerce world and workers’ representatives, have not seen any intervention in the Budget Maneuver to stop the new tax from coming into force in July 2025. The ‘Sugar tax’ it is a burdensome tax for citizens and businesses that it would cause a 28% increase in tax on a liter of refreshing drinkeven when sugar-free.
After the appeal sent by the entire agri-food chain, there is dismay also given the autumn declarations of some majority and opposition forces on the need for intervention on the Budget Law and the commitments declared in recent weeks on a forthcoming intervention in the so-called Milleproroghe: the political promises of recent months have not yet been translated into concrete signals.
“We hope that the absence of corrective measures in the draft of text of the Milleproroghe approved by the Council of Ministers it’s just a ‘stumble'”, he commented Giangiacomo Pierini, President of ASSOBIBE. “The sugar tax hits a sector already deeply impacted by inflation and increases in the cost of raw materials. It is Is this the recipe for protecting Made in Italy? More taxes and more bureaucracy mean less investment in the country and that is not what businesses need. We ask the Government for concrete signals: we need measures that encourage growth and protect the market, not that damage a sector that expresses a high social and economic value in our country.”
According to ASSOBIBE, in fact, the entry into force of the Sugar tax it would cause a brake on investments of over 46 million eurosa drop in raw material purchases of over 400 million euros and a 10% cut in turnover in a sector already in difficulty, consequently reducing activities and investments in Italy (-12%). Without forgetting the impact on bureaucracy, with hundreds of new company procedures, and on employment: it is estimated that over 5,000 jobs are at risk, with clear negative repercussions also on local communities.
A new tax which, in the countries where it was introduced, did not bring significant benefits to the health of consumers. In Italy, where beverage consumption is among the lowest in Europe, 84% of Italians do not drink sugary carbonated drinks and soft drinks represent only 0.9% of daily calorie intake in adults. Furthermore, even in the countries where it was introduced, obesity trends continued to grow (WHO data). Because of this, several states around the world have started to eliminate it (Iceland: 2000; Denmark: 2016; Australia: 2018; Norway: 2021; Israel: 2022). Even the European Commission reiterated that this tax may have no effect on overweight and obesity.