KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 16 — A total of 242 beverage products have been reformulated to contain less sugar for the Malaysian market under the Healthier Choice Logo (HCL) initiative, following the introduction of the sugar tax on sugary drinks.

Health Minister Datuk Seri Dzulkefly Ahmad said this was revealed in the Impact and Effectiveness Assessment of the Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Tax conducted in 2022, two years after the tax was implemented in 2019.

"Producers of sugary drinks have reformulated their products to lower sugar levels in order to avoid paying the tax,” he said during a question-and-answer session in Dewan Negara today.

He was responding to Senator Susan Chemerai Anding’s query on the effectiveness of the sugar tax and its positive impact on public health.

The study also showed that the 40 sen per litre sugar tax had minimal impact on market prices, resulting in only a 2.24 per cent increase compared to the anticipated 8.83 per cent, Dzulkefly said.

"What’s more significant is that the tax had successfully reduced sugary drink consumption, particularly among adolescents, with a decline from 36.9 per cent to 16.4 per cent.

"Youths and the lower-income B40 group, who are the largest consumers of sugary drinks, have benefitted most from this initiative,” he added.

He said according to the findings from the 2022 National Health and Morbidity Survey: Adolescent Health Survey, the prevalence of daily carbonated drink consumption dropped from 36.9 per cent in 2019 to 32.4 per cent in 2022.

The Health Ministry anticipates even greater reductions in sugar consumption with the government’s recent announcement to raise the sugar tax to 90 sen per litre, Dzulkefly said further. — Bernama