40% GST on Soft Drinks and Why Brewing Your Own Natural and Fresh Soft Drinks at Home Is The Smarter Choice

This month’s big headline in India isn’t about a new soft drink flavour: it’s about price tags. The recent GST changes has pushed your favourite aerated drinks like Fanta, Pepsi, Limca, etc. into the "Sin Goods" category. With a 40% GST on soft drinks, up from the previous 28%, every bottle is now a little luxury, and every habit, a new expense.

But while everyone’s eyes are on the rising shelf prices, something else has quietly shifted. The GST on kitchenware, glassware and most importantly, yeast has been reduced to 5%. For folks who like to make rather than just buy, the playing field is wide open.

Aerated Soft Drinks

Why Stick to the Old Routine?

Store-bought sodas have their appeal—they’re familiar, chilled, always just a shop away. But now, with new GST rates kicking in, each soft drink with 40% GST, costs as much as a simple meal. The formulas haven’t changed: sugar, food colouring, and shelf-life additives are present in each bottle, while what you really pay for is packaging, transport, and advertising.

Looking Beyond the 40% GST on Soft Drinks

With the new GST structure:

• Yeast and other fermentation essentials are now at 5% GST from 12%

• Glass bottles and kitchen tools have also dropped to 5% GST from 12%

• An increase to 40% GST on soft drinks from 28%

Making beverages at home is suddenly more accessible and affordable than

ever. The economics of doing it yourself are changing in your favour.

Home-brewing: A Simple Shift

It doesn’t take much to brew a delicious soda, a probiotic drink, or even a lightly sparkling fruity beverage at home. And with MyOwnBrews Probiotic Brew Bags and Probiotic Starter Kit, most of the guesswork and setup is already taken care of for you. All you need to do is add fruit or fruit juice (think oranges for a tangy soda, mangoes for a refreshing summer drink, or lemons for a crisp lemonade) and one Probiotic Brew Bag. Fermentation is quick (just an hour for non-fizzy drinks and 2 days for fizzy homemade sodas), fuss-free, and lets the natural flavours shine.

You’re not just cutting costs, you’re also skipping on the preservatives, artificial colours, and excessive sugars. Each batch is fresh, and you decide exactly what goes into it.

Why Make Your Own?

• No preservatives, stabilisers, or fake flavours and colours

• Fermentation is quick. All thanks to the Probiotic Brew Bag and all in one DIY Kits, you get fresh results in an hour to 2 days max, not weeks

• Glass bottles can be reused again and again, reducing plastic waste at home and reducing your carbon footprint

• Making drinks becomes a small act of creativity, something you control and personalise

Simple Ideas to Try at Home

Orange Soda:

Use fresh orange juice and a probiotic brew bag to create a real orange soda and reap the benefits of natural Vitamin C

Probiotic Cola:

Mix cola spices with the Probiotic Brew Bag and enjoy a drink that’s lighter, more complex, and gut-friendly

Malt Fizzy Drink:

Make a non-alcoholic malt beverage similar to the originals, without the sweetener overload

Mango Probiotic:

Let real mangoes ferment with the Probiotic Brew Bag for a chilled summer glass

Lemon & Lime Soda:

Use fresh limes and lemons, skip the chemicals, keep the fizz and enjoy the flavour

What’s Next?

As GST hikes make soft drinks pricier and glassware and fermentation ingredients more affordable, home-brewing is moving from niche to mainstream. The first try might seem like an experiment, but don’t be surprised if it quickly becomes your default. The taste, the savings, and the small act of making something yourself just add up.

And when you reach for that bottle and know exactly what’s inside? Sometimes, that’s the biggest win of all. Cheers!