The GFRP team has been awarded funding to study food purchasing patterns, diets, and health and how government policies about these can impact human health. The funding is provided by Bloomberg Philanthropies. Work is underway in Mexico and Chile in evaluating major food and nutrition policies, and the team is working with a number of […]
Healthier WIC food package leads to change in food-buying habits
A new study, led by Shu Wen Ng, published online in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, found that changes in the food choices and nutritional content of WIC packages has produced improvements in overall food purchase habits among program participants. The USDA made changes to the WIC (Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children) […]
GFRP Researchers quoted in Vox article covering success of junk food taxes
An article published January 17, 2018 on Vox highlights the successes of junk food taxes enacted in two countries (Mexico & Hungary), summarizes a recently published AJPH article from NYU & Tufts researchers making the case for a junk food tax, and quotes both Drs. Barry Popkin and Lindsey Smith Taillie on junk food spending […]
Colombia: Study predicts less sugary drink consumption with tax
GFRP researchers predict a tax on sugar-sweetened beverages in Colombia would lead to a decrease in purchases of those sugary drinks and a move toward healthier food choices in a new study published online December 20 in PLOS One. Juan Carlos Caro and team used data from the Colombia National Income and Expenditures Survey to estimate the price […]
Researchers ponder the saturated fat comeback as sodium, sugar decrease in processed foods
A Washington Post article highlights a new government report that shows many packaged food and beverage products enter and exit the marketplace in a short period of time, and from 2009-2012 the nutrients in such products changed. Food manufacturers have created new packaged products with less sodium and sugar, but more saturated fat than the […]
Stern studies Effect of Changes in Soda Consumption on Weight in Mexican Women
GFRP at UNC alumna Dalia Stern authored an article published in the American Journal of Public Health investigating the effect of changes in soda consumption on weight over 2 years on a cohort of women in Mexico (Published online September 21, 2017). The study, titled Changes in Sugar-Sweetened Soda Consumption, Weight, and Waist Circumference: 2-Year […]
Consumer Reports asks Can ‘Sin Taxes’ Solve America’s Obesity Problem?
A recent article from Consumer Reports, titled “Can ‘Sin Taxes’ Solve America’s Obesity Problem?” reviews recent policy levying taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages and junk food, the impact of such taxes in municipalities within America and countries around the world, and quotes Dr. Barry Popkin on the research surrounding these taxes and their effects on intake. While a […]
Added sugar from packaged beverages common from 2007-2012, GFRP study finds
A new study by GFRP team members, led by Dr. Shuwen Ng, evaluates the added sugar content of packaged beverages and lays the groundwork for monitoring the added sugar content of both foods and beverages over time, especially important in light of the planned federal requirements to add “added sugars” to the nutrition facts labels […]
Study finds less salt in packaged foods, more can be done
A study published June 5 by the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Internal Medicine, led by Dr. Jennifer Poti, found that Americans purchased less salt in packaged foods and beverages from 2000-2014 – but we’re still getting too much. Sodium purchased by U.S. households from store-bought packaged foods and beverages dropped by 18% […]
Study of the first year of Berkeley’s tax on SSBs
Recent research following the first tax on sugar-sweetened beverages in a US city (Berkeley, CA) has found a subsequent decrease in sales. A study titled “Changes in prices, sales, consumer spending, and beverage consumption one year after a tax on sugar-sweetened beverages in Berkeley, California, US: A before-and-after study” was published online in PLOS Medicine […]
GFRP at UNC Alum Dalia Stern wins Impact Award
Dalia Stern, PhD won an Graduate Education Advancement Board Impact Award, recognizing research discoveries that contribute to better futures for people in North Carolina, for her research analyzing where people shopped for food, which foods they purchased and the nutrient profile of their purchases. Dr. Stern’s project, titled Do More Food Shopping Options Lead to Healthier Decisions? […]
Study: “No Fat,” “No Sugar,” no guarantee of nutritional quality
Nutrient claims such as “Low Fat” or “Sugar Free” on food packaging may give consumers a sense of confidence before they make a purchase, but these claims do not always reflect the overall nutritional quality of the food. These are the findings of a new study led by GFRP researchers in collaboration with the Duke-UNC […]
SSB sales fall in Mexico after second year of taxes
Mexico’s peso-per-liter tax on sugar-sweetened beverages enacted in 2014 continues to affect sales of those beverages in the second year of the tax, show results from GFRP research, published in Health Affairs. The impact of the tax is important information about how taxes on foods or beverages affect consumer behavior, especially over a sustained period of […]
You’d Be Surprised at How Many Foods Contain Added Sugar
An article in The Upshot from the New York Times featured our research showing over 60% of the foods and beverages purchased in American grocery stores contain added sugar. Some of those products are more obvious sugary foods, but not all. The list includes many sauces, soups, fruit juices and even meat products. You might think it’s […]
The great unsweetening: Mexico’s beverage tax moves the country toward health
Featured in the Fall 2016 Carolina Public Health Magazine from the Gillings School of Global Public Health is the work by Dr. Popkin and Dr. Ng on evaluating the soda tax in Mexico. Five years ago, Mexico led the world in per-capita consumption of Coca-Cola and other sugar-sweetened beverages. Now, it’s consumption rate is stagnant […]
SSB Taxes passed in several municipalities on November 8, 2016
Results from election night show that three California cities in the Bay Area passed a penny-per-ounce tax on sugar sweetened beverages with a majority of votes by their citizens, and Boulder, Colorado passed a 2-cents-per-ounce tax on sugary beverages. Our GFRP Team is collaborating with the Public Health Institute to evaluate the effects of the […]
Study by Jen Poti finds differences in household purchases of highly processed foods
A newly published study by Dr. Jen Poti found that African-American and Hispanic households purchased less of highly processed foods when compared to White households. Dr. Poti discussed the findings in a press release from the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health: “Our findings indicate that purchases of highly processed foods were lower among […]
Evaluation of Mexico’s Tax on Nonessential Energy-Dense Foods shows Decline in Purchases
A new study done with collaboration between Global Food Research Program at UNC & Mexico’s National Institute of Public Health (INSP) has found that after the ‘junk food tax’ was enacted in Mexico in January 2014 household purchases of the taxed food items decreased. There was a 5.1% decrease in amount of taxed foods in […]
Ingredients: Added Sugars & Low-Calorie Sweeteners
Scientific evidence, expert groups, and the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines recommend decreasing caloric intake from added sugars. The recently announced update of the Nutrition Facts Panel from the FDA means that food labels will be required to report grams of added sugars in foods in the future. Even though 75% of packaged foods purchased in the […]
Popkin Commentary on Philly.com
A commentary by Professor Barry Popkin was published online by Philly.com (the online site for the Philadelphia Inquirer and Daily News). Dr. Popkin explains how the tax will affect individuals across the income divide, and answers whether the tax will be effectively “regressive”: The beverage industry and the few progressives who align with it call these […]