One of the French’s favorite drinks could soon cost more.
It is one of the French’s favorite drinks. With Cristalline water and the bottle of Ricard, Coca-Cola is the 3e best-selling product in supermarkets. Soda, sweet and carbonated, is present in most refrigerators. According to the latest official figures, 8 out of 10 French people buy it at least once a year and average consumption is around 21 liters per year per person.
This represents 12 1.75L bottles, the format best sold by the American brand in France. At €2 per bottle in supermarkets, and without counting consumption in bars, restaurants and others, this quickly represents a budget.
However, despite warnings and studies on the harmful effects of Coke consumption, the French people’s attraction to this drink has not diminished. Thus, it is through the lever of in-store prices that the State seeks to curb household enthusiasm for soda. A heavier tax is set to come into force on 1er January 2025, which would increase the price of the bottle on the shelves.
It must be said that the consumption of sugary drinks is a real public health issue, at a time when 8 million people are obese in the country. These figures are all the more worrying given that 17% of children and adolescents are overweight. If everything is not to be attributed to Coke alone, it is one of the evils. In order to limit its consumption – and even in the hope of reducing it – the price of the bottle risks increasing during the transition to the new year.
Indeed, the deputies have just validated the principle of increasing the “soda tax”, applied in particular to Coke. Currently, it represents 21 or 29 cents on the price of a bottle, depending on whether the quantity is 1.25L or 1.75L. With the new scale, it would increase to 37 or 52 cents. When going to the checkout, the price of a 1.25L bottle could thus increase from €1.70 to €1.85 and from €2 to €2.20 for a 1.75L bottle, the two formats the most more popular. For two 1.75L bottles consumed each week in a family, the additional cost over the year would amount to just over 20 euros.
Socialist deputies, as well as former Minister of Health Frédéric Valletoux, are at the origin of the proposal. According to Les Echosthe government would also be in favor of adopting such a measure. Its decision will be known on November 5 during the presentation of the text for the financing of Social Security submitted to the vote of the National Assembly. It is in this that the increase in the “soda tax” may or may not be included.
If the tax increase is ultimately not adopted or if it is lower than expected, the fact remains that the price of Coke will increase from January for another reason: the cost of sugar. This has soared by 20% in a few weeks and this will be reflected in the products on the shelves.