“This tax is levied on all drinks that contain sugar or sweeteners – therefore also light varieties, teas, coffees as well as flavored waters, even without sugars or sweeteners. It therefore does not encourage consumers to reduce their sugar consumption and to choose low-calorie alternatives, which was the intended goal. On the contrary, it only increases the prices in Belgium”deplores the president of the FIEB, Bart Peeters.
The sector organization puts forward figures from the GfK research office according to which, over the last five years (from 2017 to 2021), Belgian companies have lost 369 million euros in turnover due to cross-border purchases.
According to the FIEB, like the Belgian consumption tax “accounts for around 45% of the retail price of our drinks, the government lost more than €166 million in revenue over the same period.“
The producers of non-alcoholic beverages are therefore asking for a reduction in the tax in order to “bridging the gap” with neighboring countries, which they believe would make cross-border purchases less attractive and encourage purchases in Belgium.