Start Date: November 2009

ID #: 66971

Principal Investigator: Chen Zhen, MS, PhD

Co-Principal Investigator: Eric Finkelstein, PhD, MHA

Organization: Research Triangle Institute

Funding Round: Round 4

See more related research

Share


Health advocates have increasingly argued for taxes on calorically sweetened beverages. However, there is little empirical research that evaluates the public health and fiscal impacts of such taxes while simultaneously accounting for consumers’ and suppliers’ likely changes in economic behavior in response to a targeted tax. The aim of this study is to use econometric models to examine the effectiveness of select targeted beverage taxes on calorically sweetened beverages in reducing energy intake and determine the best tax strategy for achieving the intended public health and fiscal goals in each of the 50 largest cities/markets across the U.S. A final product of this work will be an electronic toolkit that municipalities can use to calculate the reduction in energy intake and increase in tax revenue based on user-specified tax type and rate and a specific catchment area.

Related Research

June 2014

By Ounce or by Calorie: The Differential Effects of Alternative Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Tax Strategies

This paper examines the differential effects that taxing sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) by calories and by ounce have on beverage demand. Based on sales data from supermarkets across four New York state regions, researchers predict that a calorie-based SSB tax is more effective than an ounce-based tax because it achieves more calorie reduction with a smaller More

May 2026

Beyond Added Sugar Reduction: A Narrative Review of Policies to Address Nonsugar Sweeteners

This perspective provides policymakers, advocates and researchers with a description of proposed and enacted policies that assist consumers in identifying products with nonsugar sweeteners (NSS) and/or reduce NSS exposure. Consumption of NSS is associated with multiple chronic diseases. NSS exposure is increasing as food and beverage manufacturers replace added sugars with NSS. This narrative review More

July 2025

State Earned Income Tax Credit and Food Security: Results Among Economically At-Risk Households With Children

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of the state Earned Income Tax Credit on food insecurity among economically at-risk U.S. households with children and explore differential effects across sociodemographic groups. The authors used an intent-to-treat causal inference design and household-level data from all 50 U.S. states available from the Current Population More