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High Sugar Content Detected in Sweet Soups Favoured by Hong Kongers One Bowl of Mango Sago Dessert with Pomelo Exceeds the Limit by 30%

  • 2016.10.17

Enjoying a bowl of sweet soup after meals is considered a bliss for many Hong Kongers with sweet tooth.  However, the sugar content of a small bowl of sweet soup should not be under estimated.  The joint test conducted by the Consumer Council and the Centre for Food Safety revealed that among 100 non-prepackaged sweet soup samples tested, consuming 1 bowl of more than half of the samples (51), the sugar intake would be equal to or more than 50% of the daily recommended intake limit.  The mango sago dessert with pomelo was found to contain the highest average sugar content of 11g sugar per 100g.  In 1 sample, consumption of only 1 bowl will exceed 32% of the daily intake limit.  The sugar content in sweet potato sweet soup and mung bean sweet soup ranked the second and the third with average sugar content of 10g and 9.5g sugar per 100g on average respectively.

The test covered 10 common non-prepackaged sweet soups namely red bean sweet soup, mung bean sweet soup, sweet potato sweet soup, soybean curd dessert, mango sago dessert with pomelo, sesame sweet soup, sago sweet soup with coconut milk, bean curd sheet sweet soup with egg, mixed bean sweet soup and walnut sweet soup.  A total of 100 samples of these sweet soups were collected from food premises including dessert stores, restaurants and soybean product shops for testing. 

Desserts containing fruits are generally considered healthier alternatives by most people, but the test results showed that mango sago dessert with pomelo using mango as the main ingredient had the highest sugar content with 11g sugar per 100g on average.  3 samples with the highest sugars content have a staggering 12g sugar per 100g.  Consuming a serving size of 330g of the sample represents an intake of 40g sugar, accounting for 80% of the World Health Organisation recommended daily sugar intake limit of 50g (based on a daily energy intake of 2,000 kcal). 

As the volume of containers varies from restaurant to restaurant, consumers should note that even if sugar content of sweet soups may not be the highest, consuming too big a portion may also exceed the limit.  Take mango sago dessert with pomelo as an example, weight of samples ranges from 240g to 600g.  The weight of the largest one is more than twice of the weight of the smallest one.  Although the largest sample does not contain the highest sugar content (11g sugar per 100g), consuming the entire portion means an intake of 66g sugar which exceeds the limit by 32%.  As sugar can be absorbed from other food items, overall sugar intake could exceed the limit even more.

Besides mango sago dessert with pomelo, sweet potato sweet soup also contained surprisingly high sugar content with an average of 10g sugar per 100g; and 2 samples even contained 12g sugar per 100g.  Mung bean sweet soup ranked third in sugar content with an average of 9.5g sugar per 100g.  1 sample even contained 13g sugar per 100g which is the most sugary sample in the test. 
 
Soybean curd dessert contained the least amount of sugar among all tested sweet soup types.  As no extra syrup was added upon purchase, 4 samples were found to contain less than 1g sugar per 100g and the remaining 6 samples contained an average of 5.4g sugar per 100g.  However, consumers must note that sugar syrup or brown sugar is commonly added to the soybean curd dessert while serving, thus one may have relatively higher intake if too much sugar is added. 

In addition, sago sweet soup with coconut milk and bean curd sheet sweet soup with egg generally contained lower sugar content, with 7.3g and 6g sugar per 100g on average respectively.  These 2 types of sweet soups have 2 samples and 3 samples with sugar content not more than 5g per 100g respectively and can be considered as "low sugar".

Apart from sugar content, attention should also be paid to the energy value of the sweet soups.  Among the 10 types of sweet soups tested, walnut sweet soup contained the highest energy value of 130 kcal per 100g.  Consuming 1 bowl of this sample (on the basis of the average volume per portion of walnut sweet soup) will mean an intake of 400 kcal; assuming consumption of 2,000 kcal per day, this sweet soup alone will contribute 20% of daily energy need.

According to the test results, the sugar contents of the samples of the same sweet soup type can vary by up to 100%.  Take mung bean sweet soup as an example, the sample with the lowest sugar content contained only 5.9g per 100g, while the highest contained 13g sugar per 100g.  This indicates that there is a lot of room for food premises to reduce the sugar content.  Food premises should also consider listing the nutrient information of the sweet soups on their menus, price lists and other printed materials for consumers' references.

In addition, this study also examined the nutrition labels of 11 pre-packaged sweet soups.  The soybean curd dessert has the highest sugar content with an average of 9.9g sugar per 100g.  The sample with the highest sugar content contained 10.8g sugar per 100g.  Red bean sweet soup had the lowest sugar content with an average of 7g sugar per 100g.  1 sample contained only 4.8g sugar per 100g and can be categorised as "low sugar". 

Listed below are some recommendations for restaurants:

  • Reformulate recipes by actively study the feasibility of lowering sugar level and develop plans to promote "low sugar" alternatives;  
  • List out the nutrient information of the sweet soups on menus, price lists and other printed materials to help consumers make informed choices;

Recommendations for consumers are listed as follows:

  • Maintain a balanced and diversified diet and avoid consuming food with large amount of added sugar and high energy value;
  • Pay attention to the sugar content and energy value of the sweet soups, choose sweet soups with less sugar;
  • When consuming soybean curd dessert, request for brown sugar or sugar syrup to be served separately and only add sugar when necessary;
  • Share the sweet soup with others if the serving size is too big;
  • When choosing prepackaged sweet soups, one should read the nutrition labels and study the sugar content, energy value and serving size; 
  • Reduce sugar added when making sweet soups at home.  Consider making sweet soups of different types, and choose those types of lower energy values such as red bean sweet soups.

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