The Danish tax on saturated fat: why it did not survive

Vallgårda, Signild; Holm, Lotte; Jensen, Jørgen Dejgård

doi:10.1038/ejcn.2014.224

Cited by 92 publications

(47 citation statements)

References 6 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Although not specifically aimed at meat consumption (and motivated more by economics than health), Denmark operated a tax on the saturated fat content of foods between 2011 and 2012 that raised prices of some meat products by 15% (82). Since its repeal, analyses of panel data have shown that the tax accompanied reductions in consumption of products high in saturated fat, including minced beef (83), and modeling of long-term health outcomes suggests a reduction in noncommunicable disease and premature mortality (84).…”

Section: Changing Dietsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Meat consumption, health, and the environment

Godfray

Aveyard

Garnett

et al. 2018

Science

1,391

766

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Both the global average per capita consumption of meat and the total amount of meat consumed are rising, driven by increasing average individual incomes and by population growth. The consumption of different types of meat and meat products has substantial effects on people’s health, and livestock production can have major negative effects on the environment. Here, we explore the evidence base for these assertions and the options policy-makers have should they wish to intervene to affect population meat consumption. We highlight where more research is required and the great importance of integrating insights from the natural and social sciences.

show abstract

Section: Changing Dietsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Meat consumption, health, and the environment

Godfray

Aveyard

Garnett

et al. 2018

Science

1,391

766

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Currently, strategies to combat the rise of diet-related disease in the developed world focus on manipulating the food environment to increase purchasing of 'healthy' foods and decrease purchasing of 'unhealthy' foods. Examples of interventions include food labelling (5) , food taxes (6) , advertising restrictions (7) and food reformulation (8) .…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Do low-carbon-emission diets lead to higher nutritional quality and positive health outcomes? A systematic review of the literature

Payne¹,

Scarborough²,

Cobiac³

2016

Public Health Nutr.

128

114

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Objective:To evaluate what is known about the relative health impacts, in terms of nutrient intake and health outcomes, of diets with reduced greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE). Design: We systematically reviewed the results of published studies that link GHGE of dietary patterns to nutritional content or associated consequences for health. Setting: We included studies published in English in peer-reviewed journals that included data on actual and modelled diets and enabled a matched comparison of GHGE with nutrient composition and/or health outcomes. Subjects: Studies included used data from subjects from the general population, who had taken part in dietary surveys or prospective cohort studies. Results: We identified sixteen eligible studies, with data on 100 dietary patterns. We present the results as dietary links between GHGE reduction and impact on nutrients to limit (n 151), micronutrient content (n 158) and health outcomes (n 25). The results were highly heterogeneous. Across all measures of 'healthiness', 64 % (n 214) of dietary links show that reduced GHGE from diets were associated with worse health indicators. However, some trends emerged. In particular, reduced saturated fat and salt are often associated with reduced GHGE in diets that are low in animal products (57/84). Yet these diets are also often high in sugar (38/55) and low in essential micronutrients (129/158). Conclusions: Dietary scenarios that have lower GHGE compared with average consumption patterns may not result in improvements in nutritional quality or health outcomes. Dietary recommendations for reduced GHGE must also address sugar consumption and micronutrient intake.

show abstract

“…85 Hence, the description of Behavioural Economics as psychologism is not pejorative; rather, it should be taken as a compliment with internal validity derived from the methods of 82 Madden (2015), 106; see also Vallgarda et al (2015).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

A ‘Fool’ and His Sugar-Sweetened Beverage are Soon Taxed

Bogenschneider

2017

Liverpool Law Rev

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Tax policy informed by Libertarian paternalism suggests that taxes should be levied on non-'rational' choice (i.e., where a person makes a 'foolish' decision by their own internal standards). In respect of excise taxes on sugar sweetened beverages, the regressivity of such policies can then be justified by reference to a progressive health effect, since the poor are more sensitive to changes in price and disproportionately tend to consume sugar sweetened beverages. However, as it currently stands, that conclusion is based merely on a presumption of irrationality of the poor as a class and neither the relative price of goods subject to such taxes, nor the associated 'welfare loss' from the levy of the tax, have been systematically measured. Such a presumption of non-'rationality' in food choice only holds with respect to persons who are not bound by relative prices of food, namely the wealthy. Accordingly, it is reasonable for scholars to consider the levy of excise taxes on unhealthy food consumed primarily by the wealthy (e.g., foie gras) as a 'nudge' toward a healthier food choice. Furthermore, the poor are rational agents capable of analysing and comparing relative prices of food products taking into account the health effects. As various scholars have now proposed in medical journals, any incremental tax levied on the poor in respect of sugar-sweetened beverages should be offset, for example, with a credit for healthy foods including fruits and vegetables.

show abstract

The Danish tax on saturated fat: why it did not survive

Abstract: The analysis indicates that the Danish tax on fat was introduced mainly to increase public revenue. As the tax had no strong proponents and many influential adversaries, it was repealed. New research indicates that the tax was effective in changing consumer behaviour.

Cited by 92 publications

References 6 publications

Meat consumption, health, and the environment

Meat consumption, health, and the environment

Do low-carbon-emission diets lead to higher nutritional quality and positive health outcomes? A systematic review of the literature

A ‘Fool’ and His Sugar-Sweetened Beverage are Soon Taxed

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About