Program Areas

Childhood Obesity

Pricing Strategies

RWJF Priority: Use pricing strategies—both incentives and disincentives—to promote the purchase of healthier foods

Prices can significantly affect family food choices and are emerging as an important strategy in the movement to reverse the childhood obesity epidemic. For example, when healthy foods like fruits and vegetables are more affordable, children are less likely to gain excess weight. And leading health authorities, including the Institute of Medicine, recommend new policies to reduce overconsumption of sugar-sweetened beverages, which are one of the top sources of calories in the American diet.

The resources below, from RWJF grantees and partners, explore the possible health and economic impacts of using pricing strategies to promote consumption of healthy foods and beverages and discourage consumption of unhealthy products.

Childhood Obesity Policy Priorities

From Bridging the Gap

Taxes on Soda and Snack Foods

Taxes on Soda and Snack Foods

Bridging the Gap (BTG) examines how changes in price affect consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages. BTG also has the latest research about state-level taxes on snacks and sugar-sweetened beverages.

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Childhood Obesity Program Area

RWJF is committed to tackling one of the most urgent threats to the health of our children and families—childhood obesity. Our goal is to reverse the childhood obesity epidemic by 2015.

Building Infrastructure to Document the U.S. Food Stream

February 1, 2013 | Journal Article

This commentary praises the detailed work of the article “Food Companies’ Calorie-Reduction Pledges to Improve U.S. Diet," which describes the independent evaluation of the Healthy Weight Commitment Foundation (HWCF) pledge to remove 1.5 trillion calories a year from the marketplace by the end of 2015.

The Proof is in the Pudding

June 1, 2011 | Journal Article

The Fletcher research team agrees with Chaloupka and colleagues on a number of issues regarding sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) policy. For one, taxation is a way to reduce SSB consumption providing youth are the primary target.

Principles for Framing a Healthy Food System

July 1, 2009 | Journal Article

A healthy food system is one in which everyone has daily access to a diet that allows for a full life, that does not deplete natural resources and allows for a sustainable livelihood by those involved with all aspects of food production. The author suggests seven principles that could be used in moving the United States toward a markedly improved food system.

Changing WIC Changes What Children Eat

January 1, 2013 | Journal Article

Changes in the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) and the Healthy Lifestyle Initiative saw improved health for young children participating in the New York State (NYS) WIC program: breastfeeding mothers and mothers waiting to feed infants solid foods increased; screen time and overall overweight and obesity decreased among children in NYS under four years of age.

Sugar-Sweetened Beverages and Obesity

June 1, 2011 | Journal Article

Looking at successful strategies used to reduce tobacco use and harmful drinking—can they do the same for sugar-sweetened beverage consumption?