Swiss yoghurt is still too sweet
Swiss food manufacturers and retailers have agreed on additional targets to cut back on sugar in their products.
For example, the sugar content will be reduced by a further 10% in yoghurt and 15% in breakfast cereals.
+ In 2017, the sugar-cutting target was 5%
The home affairs ministry signed an agreement with 14 companies on Tuesday. The deal is an update to the Declaration of Milan, which will be valid until 2024.
“At 110 grams a day, the Swiss population currently still consumes around twice the amount of sugar a day recommended by the World Health Organization. The Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office is therefore committed to reducing sugar in food products,” announced the ministry in a statementExternal link.
The sugar reduction will be extended to other products; cutting salt will be a new target. Federal and commercial efforts to cut sugar have been underway since 2015, but according to the home affairs ministry, “the sugar levels in both yoghurts and breakfast cereals are still substantial and need to be lowered still further”.
New sugar and salt content targets will be determined by the end of 2020 at the latest.
More
Beverage producers’ survey finds ‘clear majority’ of Swiss oppose a sugar tax
In compliance with the JTI standards
More: SWI swissinfo.ch certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here. Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.