Soft drinks can

’As a responsible retailer we want to sell these products in line with the labelling guidance,’ said Waitrose, regarding sales of high-caffeine energy drinks

Waitrose is banning under-16s from buying high-caffeine energy drinks following widespread concerns about their impact on children.

Customers buying energy drinks with more than 150mg of caffeine per litre will have to show proof of age from 5 March 2018.

Industry labelling guidelines already require soft drinks with more than 150mg of caffeine per litre to have a high-caffeine content warning stating that it is not recommended for children.

“As a responsible retailer we want to sell these products in line with the labelling guidance,” said Waitrose director of technical and corporate social responsibility Simon Moore.

“These drinks carry advice stating they are not recommended for children, so we’re choosing to proactively act on that guidance, particularly given the widespread concerns which have been raised about these drinks when consumed by under-16s.”

This comes after a campaign in December by Action on Sugar to ban sales to under-16s after its study found shockingly high levels of sugar and caffeine in the drinks.

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