Shocking amount of sugar found in many hot flavoured drinks 
 
 Up to 25 teaspoons of sugar per serving: equivalent to ≈ 3 cans of Coca Cola 
 
 
 
 Embargoed until 00.01 on 17/02/2016 
 
 
 
 9 8% of hot flavoured drinks would receive a ‘red’ (high) label for excessive levels of sugars per serving – with 35% containing the same amount or more sugar than a can of Coca Cola 
 
 8% of hot flavoured drinks would receive a ‘red’ (high) label for excessive levels of sugars per serving – with 35% containing the same amount or more sugar than a can of Coca Cola Starbuck’s Hot Mulled Fruit - Grape with Chai, Orange and Cinnamon Venti is the worst offender, containing a whopping 25 teaspoons of sugar - more than THREE times the maximum ADULT daily intake of free sugars (7tsp/d) 
 
 of sugar - more than times the maximum ADULT daily intake of free sugars (7tsp/d) With the imminent release of the government’s Childhood Obesity Strategy – Action on Sugar is calling for stricter product reformulation of sugar and fat with mandated targets, a ban on promotions and marketing of unhealthy products and a 20% tax on sugar-sweetened drinks 
 
 
 
 For the data, click here 
 
 For media coverage, click here 
 
 With an estimated 1.7 billion cups of coffee sold each year in the UK from over 18,000 outlets and one in five of the population (including teenagers) visiting a coffee shop daily[1], campaign group Action on Sugar is today warning of the dangerously high sugar content of certain hot beverages found in many high street coffee shop chains. 
 
 
 
 This new research by Action on Sugar shows that 98% of the 131 hot flavoured drinks analysed would receive a ‘red’ (high) label for excessive levels of sugars[2] per serving as sold.[3] 
 
 
 
 What’s more, 35% of the hot flavoured drinks contain the same amount or more sugars than Coca Cola, which contains a massive 9 teaspoons of sugar per can[4] – equivalent to 7 chocolate biscuits.[5] 
 
 
 
 The worst offender is the Starbuck’s Hot Mulled Fruit - Grape with Chai, Orange and Cinnamon Venti (extra-large) – a mix of chai and fruit concentrate, topped with a cinnamon stick and a slice of orange – which contains 25 teaspoons of sugar (that’s the equivalent of sugar in 5 muffins)[6], followed by Costa Coffee’s Chai Latte (large) with a massive 20 teaspoons of sugar. Interestingly, a Starbuck’s Hot Mulled Fruit - Grape with Chai, Orange and Cinnamon Tall (medium) has almost half the amount of sugar than the larger sized cup (13 vs 25 tsp). 
 
 
 
 Worst offenders for each type of flavoured hot drink per serving: 
 
 Café Drink Category Sugars per serving (g) Teaspoons of sugar per serving** Starbucks Hot Mulled Fruit - Grape with Chai, Orange and Cinnamon - Venti Hot Mulled Fruit 99.0 25 Costa Chai Latte - Massimo - Eat In Chai Latte 79.7* 20 Starbucks White Chocolate Mocha with Whipped Cream - Venti White Mocha 73.8* 18 Starbucks Signature Hot Chocolate - Venti Hot Chocolate 60.0* 15 KFC Mocha Mocha 58.8* 15 Caffe Nero Caramelatte – Drink In Caramel Latte 50.6* 13 
 
 * Contains some sugars (lactose) naturally occurring in the milk. 
 
 ** 4 grams of sugar is equal to 1 teaspoon of sugar. 
 
 Worryingly, from the entire out-of-home hot drinks surveyed, 55% contain the equivalent, or more than, the maximum daily recommended amount of sugars for an adult and teenager (30g – 7tsp/d). 
 
 
 
 When it comes to hot drinks that are perceived to be ‘healthy’, a Starbuck’s Chai Tea Latte Venti (extra-large) contains 13 teaspoons of sugar per serving alongside Eat’s Chai Latte Big and Matcha Latte Big at 11 teaspoons. 
 
 
 
 Starbucks sells two sizes larger than a typical medium serving size of 340ml, at 454ml & 568ml – adding to the excessive sugar intake in many of its hot flavoured drinks. These serving sizes are much larger than those offered by its competitors. It is time coffee chains stopped serving extra-large cups of sugar-laden hot drinks. 
 
 
 
 Despite the negative attention that the likes of Starbucks, Costa and Caffe Nero attracted last year after reports that some of their Christmas drinks were full of fat and sugar, it’s clear that little has been done to rectify the situation and reduce sugar ladened drinks from their menus.[7] 
 
 
 
 Professor Graham MacGregor, Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine at Queen Mary University of London, Chair of Action on Sugar says, “This is yet again another example of scandalous amount of sugar added to our food and drink. No wonder we have the highest rates of obesity in Europe. “Cameron now has all the evidence to make the UK the first country in the world to stop the obesity and type 2 diabetes epidemic. To do this Cameron has to be radical and follow every single action that we have set out in our comprehensive plan (see below). Otherwise it will be the final nail in an already bankrupt NHS.” 
 
 
 
 Kawther Hashem, Registered Nutritionist and Researcher for Action on Sugar says, “Coffee shop chains must immediately reduce the amount of sugar in these hot drinks, improve their labelling and stop selling the extra-large serving sizes. 
 
 “These hot flavoured drinks should be an occasional treat, not an ‘everyday’ drink. They are laden with an unbelievable amount sugar and calories and are often accompanied by a high sugar and fat snack. It is not surprising that we have the highest rate of obesity in Europe. Our advice to consumers is to have a plain hot drink or ask for your drink to contain a minimal amount of syrup, preferably sugar free, in the smallest serving size available.” 
 
 
 
 Nicola Close, Chief Executive of the Association of Directors of Public Health says, “These results highlight the need for more transparency on sugar content and compulsory labelling of sugar content. Drinkers deserve to know how much sugar they are consuming.” 
 
 
 
 Starbucks spokesperson says, “Earlier this year we committed to reduce added sugar in our indulgent drinks by 25% by the end of 2020. We also offer a wide variety of lighter options, sugar-free syrups and sugar-free natural sweetener and we display all nutritional information in-store and online." 
 
 
 
 Pret’s Orange Spiced Hot Chocolate and Orange Spiced Latte were delisted at the beginning of January as they were seasonal specials. 
 
 
 
 Ends 
 
 
 
 
 
 “Cameron’s” comprehensive plan 
 
 
 
 Cameron has promised a robust and evidence-based plan for the UK to prevent childhood obesity and type 2 diabetes. 
 
 
 
 To do this: 
 
 He must set up an independent agency for nutrition not controlled by the food industry (i.e. the opposite of the failed ‘Responsibility Deal’). 
 
 This agency would be responsible for reformulating with a 50% reduction in sugar and a 20% reduction in fat in all unhealthy drinks and foods within 5 years. 
 
 The agency would be responsible for banning of all forms of advertising/marketing/promotion of unhealthy foods and drinks to children and adolescents. 
 
 The agency with the Treasury would be responsible for a hypothecated 20% duty on all sugar-sweetened drinks. 
 
 The agency would also be responsible for uniform colour-coded labelling on all foods and drinks, both bought in supermarkets and out-of-home. 
 
 
 
 For more information contact: 
 
 
 
 National PR – David Clarke @ Rock PR 
 
 E: david@rock-pr.com M: 07773 225516 
 
 
 
 Website http://www.actiononsugar.org/ 
 
 Tweet https://twitter.com/actiononsugar #LessSugar 
 
 
 
 Notes to Editors: ||||| Some of the hot drinks contained more than 20 teaspoons of sugars., it said. 
 
 It's "yet again another example of scandalous amounts of sugar added to our food and drink," said Graham MacGregor, Action on Sugar chairman. 
 
 The top offender was Starbucks, which had seven of the 10 worst offenders. Its Venti Grape with Chai, Orange and Cinnamon Hot Mulled Fruit, contains a whopping 99 grams of sugar – the equivalent of 25 teaspoons — per serving, the group said. 
 
 Starbucks' Chai Latte Venti had 13 teaspoons, according to the group. 
 
 Action on Sugar says Starbucks promotes that drink as a healthy option.
– Have some hot beverage with your sugar. That's the roundabout finding of a UK health advocacy organization that discovered hot flavored drinks served by chains like Starbucks, McDonald's, and Dunkin' Donuts can contain a "shocking" amount of sugar—sometimes up to 25 teaspoons per serving, or more than three times the recommended daily amount for adults, per CNNMoney. The Action on Sugar report analyzed 131 hot flavored drinks from UK chains—CNN points out nutritional info on company websites would make results similar in the US—and found that 98% of the tested beverages would get slapped with a "red" label for excessive amounts of sugar, with 35% of them boasting at least the same amount of sugar as a can of Coke (9 teaspoons). "These hot flavored drinks should be an occasional treat, not an everyday drink," an Action for Sugar researcher warns. Starbucks claimed the worst of the bunch with its hot mulled fruit grape drink with orange, chai, and cinnamon—the 25-teaspoon suspect mentioned earlier. A Starbucks rep says it is committed to cutting down by a quarter the amount of added sugar in its "indulgent" beverages by 2020 and notes that it "also [offers] a wide variety of lighter options, sugar-free syrups, and sugar-free natural sweetener" and makes all of its nutritional data public. That doesn't sweeten the results for the Action on Sugar chairman, who says it's "yet again another example of scandalous amounts of sugar added to our food and drink," per CNBC. (No one can figure out what Starbucks' newest drink even is.)