SG govt to have even tighter ad measures for sugary drinks

Last week minister for health Ong Ye Kung shared that from 30 December this year, prepacked beverages with higher sugar and saturated fat must be labelled with a Nutri-Grade mark. Speaking at the 19th International Society for Peritoneal Dialysis Congress 2022 opening ceremony, he shared that today more than half of Singaporeans’ daily sugar intake comes from beverages, of which prepacked beverages such as can and packet drinks, contribute nearly two-thirds.

To address this, MOH has introduced mandatory nutrition labelling and advertising prohibition measures for prepacked beverages. He added that while the Nutri-Grade mark is a “neutral or even nice name”, the message to consumers is to avoid drinks with Nutri-Grade mark that indicates a high level of sugar. Currently, those with the highest level of sugar and saturated fat are also prohibited from advertising.

The move to ban ads for sugary drinks started as early as 2019, where Singapore was lauded for being one of the first countries in the world to ban advertising on unhealthy drinks. The move was made as part of its on-going "war on diabetes", the ban covered platforms such as print, broadcast media, online and social media.

Minister Ong added that since 2019, the measures have brought about a positive response from the demand and supply sides of the market.  “Producers have significantly reformulated their beverages ahead of the effective date of implementation,” said minister Ong, who added that preliminary data shows that the median sugar level of prepacked beverages has been reduced from 7.1% in 2017 to 4.7% in 2021.

While sales of pre-packaged beverages with higher sugar content have fallen from 63% in 2017 to 40% in 2021, conversely, sales of beverages with less than 5% sugar content have gone up from 37% to 60% over the same period. As such, MOH and HPB will step up its efforts to reduce sugar intake from freshly prepared beverages. This means freshly brewed beverages from coffee shops, freshly squeezed juices, and of course, bubble teas. These are growing source of sugar in Singaporeans’ diets.

“Our latest measures will require the outlets selling these drinks to label on their hard and softcopy menus, beverages higher in sugar and saturated fat with the Nutri-Grade mark,” he added.

Advertising prohibitions will also apply to these freshly prepared beverages with the highest level of sugar and saturated fat content, and the ministry is looking to publishing these measures in the middle of next year and have it come into effect by end of next year.

“It is not a heavy regulation but we provide the right information. These measures aim to help consumers make more informed, healthier choices, reduce the influence of advertising on consumer preferences, and spur industry reformulation,” he added.

In 2011, every day, about four new patients were diagnosed with kidney failure in Singapore. This has now gone up to six per day. Beyond influencing diet and sugar intake, MOH is also embarking a major healthcare transformation strategy, called Healthier SG, where we will place heavy emphasis on preventive care.  Private family doctors will be roped in to be an integral part of the public healthcare system, to deliver preventive care. Residents will progressively enrol with their chosen family doctor and work with them to maintain and improve their health.