The UK’s soft drinks industry has welcomed a parliamentary committee finding that there is not enough evidence to ban the sale of energy drinks to children.

In August last year, the UK government proposed prohibiting the sale of energy drinks to the under 16s in England as a means of tackling obesity.

The Science and Technology Committee has since found that “societal concerns could justify a ban on the sale of energy drinks to children”. However, the committee said “current quantitative evidence alone is not sufficient to warrant a statutory ban”.

Gavin Partington, director general of the British Soft Drinks Association (BSDA), said: “The BSDA supported the voluntary ban on the sale of energy drinks to under-16s by retailers as it is in line with our longstanding code of practice, so naturally we welcome the committee’s endorsement of this approach.

“Our members do not market or promote energy drinks to under-16s, nor do they sample products with this age group. In addition, energy drinks carry an advisory note stating ‘Not recommended for children’.

BSDA members include Red Bull UK, Coca-Cola European Partners, Danone Waters UK and Ireland, and Mars Drinks UK.

foodbev.com