Overview
- Schleswig-Holstein’s minister-president Daniel Günther plans to file a Bundesrat initiative in the first quarter of 2026 and to table the issue at the CDU party conference in February.
- The Federal Finance Ministry says the coalition agreement provides no basis for introducing a sugar tax at this time.
- Agriculture Minister Alois Rainer rejects the measure, citing a voluntary reduction strategy with industry and announcing a joint awareness campaign on diet and exercise.
- Former health minister Karl Lauterbach welcomes the push for prevention benefits, while KBV chair Andreas Gassen urges a sugar tax alongside higher tobacco and alcohol taxes with revenues earmarked for healthcare.
- A Greenpeace-commissioned analysis estimates roughly €12 billion in annual health costs from sugar, and international examples such as the UK and Mexico show taxes can prompt reformulation and lower consumption.