Vending

Study: soda taxes cut sugar consumption

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January 16, 2024

Soda taxes do in fact raise prices and result in lower sales, according to a recent study published in the journal JAMA Health Forum, reported by foxbusiness.com.

The researchers said their findings show soda taxes are an effective way to help consumers cut down on sugar intake.

The five U.S. cities examined in the study were Boulder, Colorado; Philadelphia; Oakland, California; Seattle and San Francisco. Taxes ranged from 1 to 2 cents per ounce on sugary drinks. For a two-liter bottle of soda, that adds as much as an extra $1.36 in taxes to the price.

Shelf prices rose by an average of 33.1% following the tax implementation, resulting in a 92% price pass-through rate to the consumer. In response, sales fell by 33% with no evidence in cross border shopping in untaxed areas.

Previous studies found a 15% to 20% price increase or consumption decrease resulted in health benefits, including lower rates of strokes, diabetes, obesity and heart disease.

Prior studies on the impact of soda taxes examined one taxed city and compared it to a control city with no taxes, the researchers said.

The five-city study examined the composite effect of taxes in multiple cities to discover what would happen if taxes were more widespread, Scott Kaplan, an economics professor at the U.S. Naval Academy and lead author on the study, said in an interview.