sugar tax & bakers
September 2024
Read our blog piece to find out how the impact of sugar tax is effecting bakers!
Sugar—it’s been around for some time! It was first found in Sugar cane plants. There are differing versions of when sugar was first discovered, but most sources suggest it was before Christ. Like most discoveries, the discoverers wanted to keep things secret to maximise profit. Fortunately, they failed, and today, organic and refined sugar is found in most foods.
Too much of something is never good though and sugar being addictive can definitely harm our health if we overconsume it. Both the media and empirical studies back this, so much so that the UK introduced the Soft Drinks Industry Levy AKA sugar tax in April 2018. It is visible that sugary and fizzy drinks in the UK are more expensive and the levy was initially applied to beverages only.
If I’m correct, the sugar tax has not been extended to traditional bakery products as of yet. However, some confectionery products, such as biscuits covered in chocolate, seem to fall into a grey area. One government initiative is for the chocolate and confectionery industry to meet voluntary sugar reduction targets and provide further portion size guidance.
Voluntary reduction seems to have been ineffective when it comes to sugary drinks. In 2015, the UK introduced a voluntary sugar reduction programme for sweet beverages, yet its inefficacy led to the Formalisation of Sugar-Sweetened Beverages (SSB) Taxes in 2018. Researchers from Queen Mary University London found that the voluntary sugar reduction programme achieved a 3.5% reduction in total sugar sales, while SSB taxes scored a 34.3% reduction between 2016 and 2020.
Given the success of the SSB taxes, the levy is thought to expand to “treat foods,” including chocolate, biscuits, and cakes, if the government intends to keep this promise of course. The UK is in a health crisis with the World Health Organisation (WHO) latest data showing that 27.8% of the population is obese. Increasing the price of sugary drinks seems to have helped reduce sugar intake through reduced sales; however, household names like Coca-Cola, who own Fanta and Sprite, can still dominate the markets and turn over profit. For smaller bakery/sweet treat businesses, the SSB tax extension to “treat foods” will make things more challenging to say the least. Ingredients will naturally be more expensive, causing the price of products to increase, which, given the country's current economic state, will make it more challenging to stay afloat.
I find this sad, yet it calls for people to be more treat-wise and when you do indulge in a sweet treat to support your local bakers and sweet treat makers. Their dedication to put a smile on your face when tucking into their hard work should be supported. So the next time you think of treating yourself to a Gregg’s cupcake or supermarket packet of cookies, think about how much better it would be to tuck into a cupcake or cookie made by a local baker/business. It looks better and will taste better. Furthermore, it will keep you healthier as quality definitely beats quantity when treating yourself!
Living healthy is something we should all care about, but throughout history, operant conditioning has shown us that effort and hard work are reinforced through reward. We often hear that life is too short and that unhealthy/sedentary lifestyles can lead to a shorter life. Nevertheless, we’re human at the end of the day, and health is all about balance (sound mind, body, and spirit). Treat yourself before you beat yourself, and make that treat a quality one by supporting your local bakers and sweet treat makers. If not, we’ll all be saying Oh, Sugar!
Written by Joseph Vanstraelen
Spotlight Week
Oi! Cakes
Get to know the baker …
It’s spotlight week! Wait what’s Spotlight week? Spotlight week shines all the attention onto the brilliant bakers and sweet treat makers we work with. It’s a new series that we are starting and we’re keeping with the theme that hard work deserves to be rewarded and celebrated!
This week we are shining the spotlight on Oi! Cakes and its founder, Madeleine. Based in … Madeline started Oi! Cakes in (insert year) and was a big hit at Sweet Treat Food Festival’s launch event on 25/07/24. Madeleine provided the following feedback regarding our launch event: Honestly, I loved it! It’s worked brilliantly for businesses involved and customers. It can be difficult at more open markets to know how well it’s going to go, but when it’s a place where everyone is loving the same things, it makes a great atmosphere and helps support the businesses involved so much more. I look forward to any future events!
When looking for stallholders for our first event, the name Oi! Cakes really stood out to us, as it probably does to you. Well, Madeleine is a mother of two, and she wanted to include them in the title of her business. She brilliantly decided to use the initials of her childrens’ first names to create the Oi! part in Oi! cakes. Doing so incorporated a huge part of her life into her passion whilst also eluding a positive attitude. I mean if someone said Oi! Cakes, to me, it would undoubtedly have me searching for them!
The origins of Oi! Cakes stem from Madeleine’s youngest child, who showed an interest in making cupcakes at least twice a week at the age of 1! They enjoyed decorating and mixing together, and her youngest loved the taste of the buttercream. This sparked Madeleine’s thought process to make her creations taste even better while making them even more diverse! From there, Madeleine taste-tested her creations with her friends and family to then find a way of making an income whilst being a full-time carer for her son. Madeleine shares our passion for sweet treats and as you will see on our social media, she loves bright colours and gothic themes. Nothing is off limits regarding Madeleine’s creativity in her brilliant inventions!
Madeleine’s favourite product in the Oi! Cakes tastebud-tingling arsenal is the ice cream cupcake! Yup, you heard that right—ice cream on a cupcake! At the Sweet Treat Food Festival’s launch event, I bought an Oi! Cakes Ice cream cupcake and let me tell you, it is the best cupcake I have ever had! The ice cream texture on a spongy airy cupcake base is the dynamic duo you need to try! Plus, it also has a flake! What’s not to like, you MUST try one!
Unlike her youngest child, Madeleine finds buttercream a little sickly, yet she wanted to make something that melts in your mouth minus the harsh sweetness. Madeleine took to dabbling into the different types of buttercreams and found a variant that could be eaten with a spoon. Adding this to the cupcake base and finishing off with a flake the Ice cream cupcake is a delicious delight for all. Oh I forgot to mention that the flavour possibility is endless so regardless of what Ice cream flavour you like Oi! Cakes has got you covered!
So we’ve established that Madeleine puts a lot of time and hard work into Oi! Cakes and that the results do show. Madeleine, however, has more plans for Oi! Cakes. Her creativity knows no bounds, and she always tries new things and pushes herself further into new ideas, designs and flavours. She wants Oi! Cakes to be recognised as something different whilst being inclusive of all people’s dietary requirements, including intolerances, allergies and catering to those with Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) and Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID).
At Sweet Treat, we recognise that running a business is challenging. We believe in transparency and like to share some of the difficulties our bakers and sweet treat makers experience. A lot of time and effort goes into making the sweet treats we all love, and it is important to remind ourselves that we are lucky to have talented and hard-working individuals like Madeleine, without whom Oi! Cakes would not be possible. Madeleine has kindly shared that a big challenge in running Oi! Cakes whilst being a full-time mum is time. She has shared that working around your family and making sure you’re always prepared when ordering things to cater for a last-minute order can be difficult to juggle. Moreover, Madeleine has shared that judging time to make orders, prepare market stalls, deliver orders, and collections is a big part of what makes Oi! Cakes run smoothly. Well, Madeleine it’s clear to see that you take these challenges in your stride and we here at Sweet Treat and I’m sure your customers would like to say a big thank you for your time and effort. You’re amazing! Keep doing you!
Written by Joseph Vanstralean