England bans free refills and BOGO offers for sugary drinks

Sure, the UK makes sodas sound fun and festive by calling them “fizzy drinks,” but new regulations aimed at reducing their consumption are no joke. New regulations on high-sugar drinks that took effect on October 8 ban both free refills and multibuy deals (like buy one, get one free) in restaurants and supermarkets.

British tabloids have shown their characteristic restraint in covering the ban, with The Sun—referring to South African grilled-chicken chain Nando’s, which is extremely popular in the UK—intoning in a headline: “FINAL STRAW: Nando’s fans devastated as chain limits Coca-Cola refills to ONE glass saying ‘we are living in the end of times.’”

Spelling out its newly tweaked free-refills policy on its website, Nando’s explained “we can no longer offer Bottomless Coca-Cola Classic because of its high sugar content,” adding “customers are allowed one glass of Coca-Cola Classic but can still help themselves to any of our other low-sugar bottomless drinks.”

The law applies to hot drinks, too. Supermarket chain Morrisons posted signs in its in-store cafés: “Due to a recent change in legislation, our Hot Chocolate and Mocha are now excluded from our Free Refills offer.”

“They’ve come for the hot chocolate and mocha in Morrisons!” @BMM1882 posted on X. “Hot chocolate!”

The UK also is rolling out advertising restrictions on products that are high in fat, sugar, and salt, including banning advertising the products on television before 9 p.m. Beginning in January, the products will be fully banned from advertising online.

Meanwhile, France beat the UK to the (fruit) punch, banning refills of sugary drinks in 2017.