BUFFALO, N.Y.—In an effort to curb rising obesity rates and encourage consumers to make healthier food choices, officials have proposed increasing taxes on unhealthy foods or offering subsidies for healthy foods.
Researchers at the University of Buffalo tested the two tactics head-to-head via a simulated grocery store. They found that taxing foods deemed unhealthy (based on a calorie-for-nutrition value) was more effective for encouraging purchases of healthier items than lowering the cost of the healthy items themselves.
For the study, a group of mothers were given laboratory “money” to shop for their family in a store stocked with images of everything from fruit to potato chips. For the moms’ first shopping trip, all groceries were priced according to prices at a real grocery store nearby. For subsequent shopping trips, the researchers either imposed taxes on the less healthy options, first by 12.5%, then by 25%, or discounted the price of healthy foods.
In addition to lowering the number of overall calories purchased, taxing unhealthy foods cut the proportion of fat and carbohydrates purchased, and increased the proportion of protein purchased. When prices were lowered on healthy foods, the moms used the savings to purchase unhealthy treats, thereby raising total calories purchased and not affecting the overall nutritional value.