[noelwelsh]

In the UK there is a "sugar tax" on soft drinks: https://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/explainer/sugar-ta...

The stats say it has greatly decreased sugar consumption in soft drinks. From my point-of-view (someone who rarely drinks soft drinks) it seems that most soft drinks now mix artificial sweeteners and sugar, so effectively all soft drinks are now "diet" varieties.

[masfuerte]

It's really annoying. I also drink soft drinks very rarely but if I want, say, tonic water that doesn't taste like crap I need to splash out on a premium product. Other things (e.g. cranberry juice drink) are simply unavailable without artificial sweetener. Reduced salt snacks are also shite. It is hard to find a treat that is still actually a treat.