Sugary beverage consumption declined by more than fifth in low-income neighborhoods in Berkeley, CA, after it introduced a penny-per-ounce tax last year, according to The Wall Street Journal. A new study published found that soda and sugary beverage consumption declined 21 percent after the tax went into effect. The study’s results suggest that the tax lowered consumption; however, it acknowledged that other factors could have been the cause as well.
The findings were based on interviews with Berkeley residents in 2014 and again between April and August 2015.
Neighboring San Francisco and Oakland will vote on a sugary beverage penny-per-ounce tax in November.
