CIVIC LANE Germany's finance minister has raised the possibility of extending a sugar-related levy across a wider range of drinks, potentially including nectar, smoothies and some oat beverages. Such taxes are designed to discourage excessive sugar consumption and encourage manufacturers to reformulate products. Consumers, however, may simply experience the policy as another increase in supermarket prices. The argument therefore combines public health, taxation and personal freedom in an unusually everyday way. It asks how far governments should use prices to influence what people drink.