this post was submitted on 26 Aug 2026
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[–] Catoblepas@lemmy.blahaj.zone 135 points 2 days ago (20 children)

100% fruit juices would remain exempt

Why?? Shit’s sugar. You’re not getting most of the nutritional benefit from juice, all the fiber has been removed.

[–] LittleBorat3@lemmy.world 5 points 1 day ago

Someone paid someone else a million and now juice with 50 percent sugar is not included in this.

Stevia coke is, how weird ..

[–] cattywampas@lemmy.world 61 points 2 days ago (2 children)

My guess is because it's unsweetened, and that the tax applies to drinks with added sugar or sweetener.

[–] Catoblepas@lemmy.blahaj.zone 61 points 2 days ago (15 children)

‘We should reduce sugar and sweetener consumption, let’s not tax this drink that’s almost pure sugar because it’s natural’ is asinine. Apple juice has virtually identical sugar content to a soda.

[–] tyler@programming.dev 8 points 2 days ago (5 children)

They’re not the same types of sugar. Your body uses glucose differently than fructose.

[–] pseudo@jlai.lu 5 points 1 day ago

They are both very high in fructose. What is your point? I genuinly don't get it.

[–] SalmiakDragon@feddit.nu 11 points 2 days ago

Maybe to some extent? I don't think the superiority of one monosaccharide over the other has been clearly established. There are differences, but the health impact of them are not clear. Also, "glucose vs fructose" is

  1. not super-relevant to the matter of comparing juice with soda. At least here in the Nordics, most sodas seem to be sweetened with sugar, a.k.a. sucrose (a.k.a. fructose+glucose, see below), and maybe a splash of juice. (Based on a survey of my favorites, though I mostly drink the Zero-versions)

  2. a bit of a false choice (see below).


Fructose often co-occurs with glucose

(Source: Wikipedia article on Fructose)

  • Fructose co-exists with glucose, in sucrose ...

Fructose, or fruit sugar, is a common monosaccharide, i.e. a simple sugar. It is classified as a reducing hexose, more specifically a ketonic simple sugar found in many plants, where it is often bonded to glucose to form the disaccharide sucrose.

  • ... and in fruit.

Table: "Sugar content of selected common plant foods". Note that many of the fruits' sugar content is dominated by a combination of sucrose and free fructose. Only plum breaks this trend, containing mostly glucose instead (still 47% sucrose and fructose).

  • Also: Fructose mostly ends up as glucose

The liver converts most fructose and galactose into glucose for distribution in the bloodstream or deposition into glycogen.

"Potential health effects"

  • A lot of the discussion in this part of the article is just about overconsumption of dietary sugars (including glucose and sucrose) in general, which would indicate to me that the differences between them aren't all that significant. However:

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) stated in 2011 that fructose may be preferable over sucrose and glucose in sugar-sweetened foods and beverages because of its lower effect on postprandial blood sugar levels,[58] while also noting the potential downside that "high intakes of fructose may lead to metabolic complications such as dyslipidaemia, insulin resistance, and increased visceral adiposity".[58][59] The UK's Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition in 2015 disputed the claims of fructose causing metabolic disorders, stating that "there is insufficient evidence to demonstrate that fructose intake, at levels consumed in the normal UK diet, leads to adverse health outcomes independent of any effects related to its presence as a component of total and free sugars."[60]

  • "Compared to sucrose"

Fructose was found to increase triglycerides in type-2 but not type-1 diabetes, and moderate use of it has previously been considered acceptable as a sweetener for diabetics,[61] possibly because it does not trigger the production of insulin by pancreatic β cells.[62] For a 50 gram reference amount, fructose has a glycemic index of 23, compared with 100 for glucose and 60 for sucrose.[63] Fructose is also 73% sweeter than sucrose at room temperature, allowing diabetics to use less of it per serving.

[–] liuther9@lemmy.world 0 points 1 day ago (1 children)

What is the difference? Both harmful same way, glucose spikes, leads to obesity

[–] tyler@programming.dev 2 points 1 day ago

They are not. Monosaccharides are absorbed differently and used differently than disaccharides.

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[–] Valmond@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 2 days ago

Isn't it fructose, or has it changed during the "jucification" process? I mean fructose is sugar, but way less bad than refined sugars.

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[–] ghurab@lemmy.world 19 points 2 days ago (1 children)

That's not true, the tax apply to unsweetened milk alternatives.

[–] Nalivai@lemmy.world 3 points 1 day ago

This is probably the most bizzare part

[–] hanrahan@slrpnk.net 10 points 2 days ago

because they aren't purtity testing their legislation and added sugar and added artificial sweeteners is their current target, it's a start ffs

[–] Jake_Farm@sopuli.xyz 15 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Because like all laws, corruption came into the process to make it miss the goal entirely.

[–] Hegar@fedia.io 3 points 2 days ago (3 children)

Taxing almost all sugary drinks including artificial sweetners but not 100% juice is not "missing the goal entirely". That's still hitting the unhealthiest and most marketed beverages.

[–] Jake_Farm@sopuli.xyz 20 points 2 days ago

There is no evidence that sugar substitutes are unhealthy and in fact have proven over and over again to increase weight loss compared to full sugar or telling people to "just drink more water".

[–] huppakee@lemmy.world 12 points 2 days ago

I'd agree if this targeted products with added sugar and left the artificial sweetners out of it. Fruit juice is also sold in high volumes, especially to families and people beyond their prime age. They might be less marketed, but I would argue they're not less unhealthy than soda with artificial sweetners. They might not miss the figurative goal entirely, but they sure are missing their literal goal if they are doing this to limit peoples consumption of unhealthy drinks.

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[–] qyron@sopuli.xyz 6 points 2 days ago

A company (Compal) in my country (Portugal) that has been making whole fruit juice since the 70's. If they made it any thicker, you could eat it with a fork.

Spain and France also have off-brand manufacturers of this type of fruit drink. Germany could learn something

[–] SaharaMaleikuhm@feddit.org 6 points 2 days ago

You can't expect logic from a conservative government, silly.

[–] LemmyPlaceDN@europe.pub 1 points 2 days ago (3 children)

Not all sugar is the same. I've read that natural fruit sugar is still way healthier than industrially refined sugar. Also fruit juice usually contains vitamins, electrolytes and fiber. So from a health perspective it makes sense to me to exempt 100℅ fruit juices. The alternative would be to only allow juice mixed with water or something else.

[–] atzanteol@sh.itjust.works 6 points 1 day ago

Jesus, the Kennedy-fication of public health is real.

[–] OilyArena@lemmy.ml 2 points 1 day ago (2 children)

Well, you read wrong. Fructose is a very short chain sugar and is absorbed into the bloodstream a lot faster than "regular" sugar, making it more unhealthy.

[–] atzanteol@sh.itjust.works 1 points 16 hours ago

"regular sugar" is 50% fructose.

[–] Nalivai@lemmy.world 1 points 1 day ago

But it's much more sweet tasting so you need less of it. Don't know if it actually balances out though.

[–] SalmiakDragon@feddit.nu 5 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Read where?

I'll just link to another comment I made here: https://feddit.nu/post/22364165/21693381

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[–] tomi000@lemmy.world 0 points 1 day ago (1 children)

The problem is processed sugar being the cheapest calories per weight you can find so adding sugar to drinks is hyper cheap while getting people (especially kids) addicted and sick. 100% fruit juices arent the problem.

[–] atzanteol@sh.itjust.works 7 points 1 day ago (1 children)

No, the problem is that people have simply demonized soda. HFCS in particular. It's not about sugar, it never has been. An exception for fruit juice makes this obvious. It's the "naturalistic fallacy" in action.

[–] tomi000@lemmy.world 1 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (1 children)

How does an exception for fruit juice (containing natural sugar and relatively expensive) make it obvious that its not about added sugar and cheap drinks?

[–] RamRabbit@lemmy.world 2 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (1 children)

Sugar is exactly as healthy as sugar. Notice how I didn't add any words to the front? Those words don't change how (un)healthy sugar is. The law clearly isn't about health; as it is portrayed.

Furthermore, they tax artificial sweeteners as well. So, might as well use actual sugar if you are paying the tax either way!

[–] tomi000@lemmy.world 1 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Sugar is exactly as healthy as sugar.

This shows how little you know about the subject yet you keep arguing as if you had facts. Sugar is a category of compounds consisting mainly of saccharids (which again, is a category of compounds). There are literally thousands of "sugars" which vary wildly in their effects on the human body. Also, other stuff you ingest/digest at the same time influences those as well..

Furthermore, they tax artificial sweeteners as well.

Nope. Klingbeil revoked that immediately afterwards.

[–] atzanteol@sh.itjust.works 0 points 1 day ago (1 children)

This shows how little you know about the subject yet you keep arguing as if you had facts. Sugar is a category of compounds consisting mainly of saccharids (which again, is a category of compounds). There are literally thousands of “sugars” which vary wildly in their effects on the human body. Also, other stuff you ingest/digest at the same time influences those as well…

Yeah - but that's not what this is about is it? It's "natural good-for-you sugar" vs. "evil corporate refined high-fructose corn syrup". The naturalistic fallacy laid bare.

[–] tomi000@lemmy.world 1 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (1 children)

Not as far as Im concerned. This is "corporations add dirt cheap sugar to drinks making people addicted to poison for cents per liter" vs. "there simply is sugar in a pressed fruit". And does it really matter what the motivation is as long as the desired result is the same? Taxing fruit juices just wouldnt make any sense. Theyre not the problem.

[–] atzanteol@sh.itjust.works 1 points 4 hours ago

This is “corporations add dirt cheap sugar to drinks making people addicted to poison for cents per liter” vs. “there simply is sugar in a pressed fruit”

Which is almost identical to what I said.

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