Over half of South African beverages will require warning labels for high levels of sugar and artificial sweeteners.

This was revealed in a research article by Wantonda Mukhovha, Naledi Sibiya, Thanujj Kisten, Molatela Mamabolo, and Siphiwe Dlamini.

Siphiwe Dlamini from the University of the Witwatersrand’s Department of Physiology explained the expected changes.

He said the Department of Health implemented several interventions to address the rise in obesity and diabetes in South Africa.

One of the interventions is amending the regulations around advertising food products, including a proposal regarding warning labels for sugary drinks.

The researchers launched a study to determine the proportion of commercially available beverages that may require warning labels.

These warning labels relate to high sugar content and the presence of artificial sweeteners in South Africa.

This study analysed 603 non-alcoholic beverages from the top South African supermarkets, including juices, soft drinks, and energy drinks.

The researchers used the ingredient lists and nutritional information in 100 ml of these beverages.

They then identified the beverages which require warning labels for high sugar content and artificial sweeteners based on the proposed labelling regulations.

The study revealed that more than half of South African beverages are expected to require warning labels due to high sugar content or artificial sweeteners.

• 21.4% of beverages required a warning label for high sugar content.

• 49.8% of beverages required a warning label for artificial sweeteners.

• 58.7% of beverages required a warning label for at least one of these criteria.

Juices sold in South Africa were least likely to need warning labels for high sugar or artificial sweeteners.

This is despite them having the highest energy (160 kJ/100 ml), glycaemic carbohydrates (9%) and sugar content (8.4%).

“The proposed regulations are likely to favour juices, which, despite their high sugar content, are less likely to require warning labels because the sugar is naturally occurring,” they said.

The researchers said the South African government should include beverages with high natural sugar levels, like juices, in warning label criteria.

“This would ensure that consumers are adequately informed about the sugar content in all types of beverages,” they said.