Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-08-26

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Many manufactured food and drink products contain high levels of sugar, which causes many health problems. Sugary products should be made more expensive to encourage people to consume less sugar.

Do you agree or disagree?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Student answer (Band 6.5)

Nowadays, ultra-processed food and drinks are gaining huge popularity because it is easy to purchase. Some people contend that the government should increase the prices of ready-made products because it is affecting health. I strongly agree that national authorities must implement higher taxes on fast food items and lower the prices of healthy products, whilst this revenue can be invested in healthcare caused by sugary products.

First of all, to decrease health problems caused by ultra-processed food (UPF) and beverages, the government bodies must take strong coercive action by imposing high taxes. When prices are increased, more people will probably prefer not to spend their money on unhealthy food. For instance, the UK government in 2018 increased the prices of sugary products, which resulted in a plunge in sales. However, as an alternative, authorities ought to decrease the prices of healthy food products to attract more potential buyers. Consequently, it will help people to consume nutritious food.

Furthermore, when the government get taxes from these unhealthy products, that can be invested in healthcare sectors. Because manufactured food and drinks contain high levels of sugar, which leads to severe health problems such as obesity and diabetes. These chronic illnesses require a higher amount of money to treat, which not everyone can afford, so the government would support them.

In conclusion, I fully support this view that these issues might be tackled by government support by legitimising tax laws. It will significantly decrease the sales of unhealthy items, as a result it will control adverse medical issues as well.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The response addresses all parts of the prompt, clearly stating a position in the introduction and maintaining it throughout. The ideas are relevant, such as the mention of the UK sugar tax and the suggestion to subsidize healthy foods. However, the development is somewhat limited. For instance, the argument regarding the investment of tax revenue into healthcare is a strong point, but it could have been expanded with more specific detail on how this would practically reduce the burden of chronic illnesses. Overall, the response is well-focused and meets the requirements of the task effectively.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Each paragraph has a central theme, and the progression of ideas is easy to follow. Cohesive devices such as 'First of all', 'Furthermore', and 'Consequently' are used effectively to link ideas. However, there are minor issues with referencing and flow, such as the phrase 'whilst this revenue can be invested in healthcare caused by sugary products', which is slightly awkward. Despite this, the paragraphing is appropriate, and the overall structure supports the argument well.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is generally appropriate and sufficient for the task. The student uses topic-specific terms like 'ultra-processed food', 'coercive action', 'chronic illnesses', and 'legitimising'. There are some minor inaccuracies in word choice, such as 'plunge in sales' (which is good) contrasted with slightly less natural phrasing like 'get taxes' instead of 'collect taxes' or 'revenue'. The range is adequate to convey ideas with precision, though it lacks the sophisticated, idiomatic control required for higher bands. Communication is never impeded by the lexical choices made.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The essay demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There is good control over basic grammar, but there are occasional errors in subject-verb agreement and article usage, such as 'when the government get taxes' (should be 'gets') and 'invested in healthcare sectors' (should be 'the healthcare sector'). Some sentences are slightly clunky, such as 'as a result it will control adverse medical issues as well', which would be better as a subordinate clause. Despite these errors, the meaning is always clear, and the grammatical mistakes do not interfere with the reader's understanding.

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