Soda tax extended to sweet products

The National Assembly approved an extension of the soda tax to include sweet products during a preliminary session. This decision was part of the committee on social affairs' examination of the 2027 social security budget.

Tax targets high-sugar pre-packaged foods

The government's bill expands the "soda tax," introduced in 2012, to cover pre-packaged sweet products rich in sugar. These include pastries, cakes, biscuits, breakfast cereals, confectionery, and chocolate, according to the explanatory note of the bill.

Industry warns of higher consumer costs

Industry representatives had raised concerns in late September, predicting that the tax would lead to increased costs for consumers. They argued that the expanded tax might not significantly improve public health while adding a new financial burden on French taxpayers.

Opposition amendments not adopted

Proposals from the RN, UDR, and LR deputies to remove the tax extension were rejected. Instead, deputies approved amendments from MoDem deputy Cyrille Isaac-Sibille and RN deputy Stéphanie Galzy, expanding the tax to ultra-processed sugary products and excluding small food producers.

Nutri-Score made mandatory

Later in the evening, deputies approved amendments making the Nutri-Score mandatory on all food packaging and advertising, with exceptions for products with protected designations. They also supported an ecological amendment to ban tobacco sales to those born after January 1, 2009.

Debates set the stage for further discussions

The debates were described as a "warm-up" for future discussions, as deputies returned to the chamber with the original version of the text, indicating that major changes were not expected at this stage.