A Starbucks barista’s post showing what looks like an obscene amount of syrup in a single Peppermint Mocha has sparked a debate among TikTokers on the sugar content in their coffee drinks.
Megan Palluccio (@cozybarista) posted a PSA that’s garnered 1.2 million views as of Sunday, along with a barfing emoji in the caption that represents how she feels about the amount of flavored sweetener in the festive drink.
“This is how much syrup goes in a peppermint mocha,” the barista writes in a text overlay as they show off a plastic Starbucks cup to the camera. About a fifth of the cup is filled with chocolate syrup and depending on which size and variant of the drink one orders, this amount of syrup, combined with other ingredients, results in different calorie counts. A Tall packs 100 calories, a Grande 130, a Venti 170, and the Frappuccino variant houses a whopping 430 calories, according to the brand’s website.
Viewers also thought the amount of syrup in Peppermint Mochas was a bit on the obscene side. One barista wrote, “Whenever someone orders a peppermint mocha half sweet i breathe a sigh of relief.”
A Starbucks customer complained about peppermint mochas as being overly sweet, writing, “Yesss i got a peppermint mocha today and it was way to sweet. could barely taste the coffee.”
However, several commenters didn’t seem to care that they were ingesting that peppermint mocha syrup in a single beverage. One individual penned, “And imma EAT. THAT. UP.” This was a sentiment echoed by someone else who also wrote, “and? hand it ovaaa.”
Someone else replied that they don’t go to Starbucks because they like coffee, they visit the chain so that they can drink liquid cake.
“That’s exactly what I want … I don’t want it to taste like coffee I want it to taste like a dessert,” they wrote.
@cozybarista 🤮 #starbucks #barista #starbucksdrinks #starbucksrecipes #starbucksbarista #starbuckscup #starbuckssecretmenu #starbuckschallenge #starbuckscups #starbucksorder ♬ Now That We Don’t Talk (Taylor’s Version) (From The Vault) – Taylor Swift
There’s a reason why so many people are up in arms about the amount of sugar in drinks and foods. That’s because according to Times of India, sugar is responsible for more deaths worldwide than gun violence. Numerous analysts and universities have pointed out how big of a killer sugar is, and the ingredient kills more Americans each year than any other cause of death.
The popular coffee chain has come under fire over the years for what many deem an “alarming” amount of sugar in its beverages. On Redditor posted in the site’s r/starbucks sub that the franchise’s “specialty drinks” are “like drinking diabetes in a cup,” and are flabbergasted that customers continue to order them.
Business Insider also wrote in 2016 that Starbucks was called out by a U.K. activist group against sugar. It pointed out many of its caffeinated creations packed more sugar than cans of soda: “One of the biggest culprits is Starbucks’ seemingly innocuous hot mulled fruit grape with chai, orange, and cinnamon, which has 99 grams of sugar in a venti — the equivalent of adding 25 teaspoons of sugar to your cup of tea or coffee.”
Starbucks responded to the group’s call-outs, stating that it committed to cutting back on the overall amount of sugar that its drinks contain in a four-year plan: “Earlier this year we committed to reduce added sugar in our indulgent drinks by 25 percent by the end of 2020. We also offer a wide variety of lighter options, sugar-free syrups and sugar-free natural sweeteners and we display all nutritional information in-store and online,” as spokesperson for the company was reported as saying by CNBC.
According to Starbucks Stories, the chain’s blog, it’s not only cut a quarter of the sugar its beverages contain, but they’ve taken a more natural approach to the ingredients it offers its customers.
“Today, we only serve products free from High Fructose Corn Syrup, Caramel Color and other artificial dyes, artificial flavors and artificial trans-fats, we reduced added sugar in indulgent beverages by 25%, and are committed to using 100% cage-free eggs,” they wrote.
The Daily Dot has reached out to Starbucks via email and Palluccio via TikTok comment.
