• Richard D Smith, Laura Cornelsen, Diana Quirmbach, Susan A Jebb, and Theresa M Marteau.
• Faculty of Public Health and Policy, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK.
• BMJ Open. 2018 Apr 26; 8 (4): e019788.

ObjectivesTaxing sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) is now advocated, and implemented, in many countries as a measure to reduce the purchase and consumption of sugar to tackle obesity. To date, there has been little consideration of the potential impact that such a measure could have if extended to other sweet foods, such as confectionery, cakes and biscuits that contribute more sugar to the diet than SSBs. The objective of this study is to compare changes in the demand for sweet snacks and SSBs arising from potential price increases.SettingSecondary data on household itemised purchases of all foods and beverages from 2012 to 2013.ParticipantsRepresentative sample of 32 249 households in Great Britain.Primary And Secondary Outcome MeasuresChange in food and beverage purchases due to changes in their own price and the price of other foods or beverages measured as price elasticity of demand for the full sample and by income groups.ResultsChocolate and confectionery, cakes and biscuits have similar price sensitivity as SSBs, across all income groups. Unlike the case of SSBs, price increases in these categories are also likely to prompt reductions in the purchase of other sweet snacks and SSBs, which magnify the overall impact. The effects of price increases are greatest in the low-income group.ConclusionsPolicies that lead to increases in the price of chocolate and confectionery, cakes and biscuits may lead to additional and greater health gains than similar increases in the price of SSBs through direct reductions in the purchases of these foods and possible positive multiplier effects that reduce demand for other products. Although some uncertainty remains, the associations found in this analysis are sufficiently robust to suggest that policies-and research-concerning the use of fiscal measures should consider a broader range of products than is currently the case.© Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

11 keywords...

hide…