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Taxing highly processed foods: What could be the impacts on obesity and underweight in sub-Saharan Africa?

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  • Boysen, Ole
  • Boysen-Urban, Kirsten
  • Bradford, Harvey
  • Balié, Jean

Abstract

The consumption of highly processed food has been singled out as one of the factors responsible for the rapidly increasing prevalence of obesity and its associated non-communicable diseases and costs. While obesity prevalence is still comparatively low in lower-income sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), development prospects in this region render markets especially attractive for these foods, whose consumption is already growing at higher rates than in developed countries. This might be reflected in the massive rise in obesity prevalence growth rates in SSA over the past decade, while many of these countries are simultaneously struggling with high undernutrition prevalence.

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  • Boysen, Ole & Boysen-Urban, Kirsten & Bradford, Harvey & Balié, Jean, 2019. "Taxing highly processed foods: What could be the impacts on obesity and underweight in sub-Saharan Africa?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 119(C), pages 55-67.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:wdevel:v:119:y:2019:i:c:p:55-67
    DOI: 10.1016/j.worlddev.2019.03.006
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    3. Arve Hansen, 2022. "Negotiating Unsustainable Food Transformations: Development, Middle Classes and Everyday Food Practices in Vietnam," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 34(3), pages 1441-1459, June.
    4. Barlow, Pepita & Sanap, Rujuta & Garde, Amandine & Winters, L. Alan & Mabhala, Mzwandile A. & Thow, Anne Marie, 2022. "Reassessing the health impacts of trade and investment agreements: a systematic review of quantitative studies, 2016–20," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 113791, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    5. Gilbert, Rachel & Costlow, Leah & Matteson, Julia & Rauschendorfer, Jakob & Krivonos, Ekaterina & Block, Steven A. & Masters, William A., 2024. "Trade policy reform, retail food prices and access to healthy diets worldwide," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 177(C).
    6. Zamani, Omid & Chibanda, Craig & Pelikan, Janine, 2020. "Tariff Escalation and Import Bans in the Economic Partnership Agreement between the EU and West Africa," Conference papers 333239, Purdue University, Center for Global Trade Analysis, Global Trade Analysis Project.
    7. Daran, Bertille & Levasseur, Pierre, 2022. "Is overweight still a problem of rich in sub-Saharan Africa? Insights based on female-oriented demographic and health surveys," World Development Perspectives, Elsevier, vol. 25(C).

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