Price changes for sugary soft drinks are met with both support and opposition. Some understand the health benefit, some wish that the customer could decide for himself.
Not everyone is pleased with the fast food chains’ decision to raise the prices of sugar sodas.
At McDonald’s in Kamppi, one wonders about the price increase, among other things Silva Rönkä. He understands that it is about people’s health, but wonders if it could be achieved by other means.
– I think it’s a bit strange to acquire funds for the state like this. You could probably get money from better places.
Emilia Tikkanen the computer on the other side of the table. As an unemployed student, the price increase is sad. For those who bought sugar syrup Mimosa for a Jew too I missed the surprise.
– It might not have been a necessary addition, Juutilainen says.
The customers tell about their experiences in more detail in the video found at the top of the article.
Vahid Bahrami (left), Elsa Sointu and Sibel Demir (in the background) hope that people’s own judgment would be trusted. Especially Demir was annoyed by the price increase, because he bought sugar soda and prefers them anyway. Henri Kärkkäinen
Direct tax
On April Fool’s Day, Hesburger and McDonald’s carried job mail for sugar mice. The chains raised the price of the sugary soft drinks they sold.
The reason is the sugar slime tax increase that came into effect at the beginning of April, the costs of which the chains are now passing on to customers. Hesburger and McDonald’s announced the price increases on Tuesday.
Specifically, the soft drink tax was tiered into six tax levels based on sugar content.
Hesburger and McDonald’s meals now include a sugar-free drink by default. Regular Coca-Cola is available for an additional fee. At Hesburger’s self-service checkout, the matter is indicated with a red print. Henri Kärkkäinen
Linnea Lehtis and Viggo Sundqvist don’t mind the price increase. It makes more sense to them. Henri Kärkkäinen
Restaurant manager Laura Liukkonen Kampin from McDonald’s says that there was no need to explain the change to customers on Monday.
According to Liukkonen’s memories, the order of the menu at the self-service cash registers has also changed so that sugar-free sodas are visible to the customer first. Water, soda and fresh juice are the lowest.
– I would say that one customer out of a hundred changes their lemonade to something else, Liukkonen estimates.
Dining at Hesburger in Kamppi Elli Rajamäki supports the tax change.
– People like to buy cheaper. Then you might prefer to buy sugar-free, says Rajamäki.
Rajamäki himself usually drinks sugar-free, so the change doesn’t affect him at all. He considers the price changes in fast food restaurants to be reasonable.
Instead Elsa Sointu hopes that people would be free to decide which lemonade they choose.
A sugary kokis costs 25 cents extra in Mäkkäri. Henri Kärkkäinen
In Antti Kankaanpää’s opinion, it is good if taxes are used to guide healthier choices. Henri Kärkkäinen
Light tightening
All customers interviewed by Iltalehti have not even noticed the price increase. One wonders why this was not mentioned at the checkout.
In both restaurant chains, the additional price only applies to Coca-Cola. Of the other sodas, only a sugar-free option is available.
At the self-service cash registers, it becomes clear that it is not a very noticeable rise in prices. At Hesburger, the lemonade included in the meal costs either 10, 15 or 20 cents more with sugar than unsweetened, depending on the size.
Emilia Tikkanen (left), Mimosa Juutilainen and Silva Rönkä do not believe that the price of sugar syrup is increasing. The tax benefit could be obtained from other sources as well, says Rönkä. Henri Kärkkäinen
In Mäkkäri, the increase is a little harder. Tavan kokis costs 25 cents more in a 0.4-liter cardboard mug than its sugar-free counterpart.
Antti Kankaanpää eats his meal at McDonald’s in Kamppi. He usually drinks his lemon without sugar anyway for health reasons.
– We rarely drink soft drinks. Mainly beer, Kankaanpää tells about his and his companion’s habits.
In Kankaanpää’s opinion, it is worthwhile that the prices of unhealthy products, such as tobacco and sugar, rise.
– It’s the right direction, that’s how it should be. As in tobacco or many other things. Except, of course, it shouldn’t be in alcohol, it’s such a common way for the state to get money, Kankaanpää jokes.