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New research backs the argument that «sin taxes» lead to a reduction in consumption, justifying the use of the duties in combating obesity and other health issues, its authors say. The 2017 decision by city officials in Philadelphia to impose a beSoda taxes work in cutting consumption, US study finds
New research backs the argument that «sin taxes» lead to a reduction in consumption, justifying the use of the duties in combating obesity and other health issues, its authors say. The 2017 decision by city officials in Philadelphia to impose a beverage tax on sugary and artificially-sweetened drinks caused sales to drop by 38 percent, according to a study published Tuesday. Philadelphia is one of seven US cities to have enacted the measure in recent years, along with France, Mexico and other jurisdictions. Starting January 1, 2017, the East Coast city of 1.6 million people began adding a tax of 1.5c per ounce on all sweetened drinks, including «diet» sodas. Researchers used Baltimore, where the tax was not imposed, as a control because of its similar socio-demographic and health profile. The study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), found that Philadelphia shops passed on the additional costs to consumers, either in whole or in part, leading to a 51 percent reduction of sales within the city. Areas bordering the city that were not affected by the tax saw a bump in sales, but after accounting for this effect, the net fall in sales was estimated... Read more
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