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Trends in beverage prices following the introduction of a tax on sugar-sweetened beverages in Barbados.

Accepted version
Peer-reviewed

Type

Article

Change log

Authors

Kostova, Deliana 
Suhrcke, Marc 
Hambleton, Ian 
Hassell, Trevor 

Abstract

A 10% excise tax on sugar sweetened beverages (SSBs) was implemented in Barbados in September 2015. A national evaluation has been established to assess the impact of the tax. We present a descriptive analysis of initial price changes following implementation of the SSB tax using price data provided by a major supermarket chain in Barbados over the period 2014-2016. We summarize trends in price changes for SSBs and non-SSBs before and after the tax using year-on-year mean price per liter. We find that prior to the tax, the year-on-year growth of SSB and non-SSB prices was very similar (approximately 1%). During the quarter in which the tax was implemented, the trends diverged, with SSB price growth increasing to 3% and that of non-SSBs decreasing slightly. The growth of SSB prices outpaced non-SSBs prices in each quarter thereafter, reaching 5.9% compared to <1% for non-SSBs. Future analyses will assess the trends in prices of SSBs and non-SSBs over a longer period and will integrate price data from additional sources to assess heterogeneity of post-tax price changes. A continued examination of the impact of the SSB tax in Barbados will expand the evidence base available to policymakers worldwide in considering SSB taxes as a lever for reducing the consumption of added sugar at the population level.

Description

Keywords

Diabetes mellitus, Diet, Economics, Nutrition policy, Obesity, Primary prevention, Barbados, Beverages, Commerce, Dietary Sucrose, Humans, Obesity, Sweetening Agents, Taxes

Journal Title

Prev Med

Conference Name

Journal ISSN

0091-7435
1096-0260

Volume Title

Publisher

Elsevier BV
Sponsorship
Wellcome Trust (087636/Z/08/Z)
Economic and Social Research Council (ES/G007462/1)
Medical Research Council (MR/K023187/1)
Medical Research Council (MR/P025250/1)
Financial support for the analyses presented in this paper was from the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention (TEPHINET). The full evaluation is receiving support from the Canadian International Development Research Centre (grant no. 107604-001), the Pan American Health Organization. MA is funded through a Gates Cambridge PhD Scholarship. JA is funded by the Centre for Diet and Activity Research (CEDAR), a UKCRC Public Health Research Centre of Excellence. Funding from the British Heart Foundation, Cancer Research UK, Economic and Social Research Council, Medical Research Council, the National Institute for Health Research, and the Wellcome Trust, under the auspices of the UK Clinical Research Collaboration, is gratefully acknowledged.