Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Taxation in Barbados: Rationale and Evaluation Aspects.

The absolute health burden associated with non-communicable disease (NCDs) and diabetes mellitus has been growing worldwide. The global prevalence of obesity and exposure to sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) have also increased. In Barbados, diabetes prevalence is almost double the global average, and overweight and obesity estimates are much higher than global estimates. SSB consumption in Barbados has also been estimated to be much higher than elsewhere. Within this context, the Government of Barbados announced a 10% tax on SSBs in 2015. We discuss the structure and coverage of this tax, and then summarize the seven research areas that are being considered as part of the Barbados SSB tax evaluation. We present our current theory of change, and illustrate how each research area corresponds to different aspects of the conceptual framework. We summarize initial findings around price change (published previously), and link these findings with earlier discussion of the tax structure. Finally, we discuss the strengths and limitations associated with the proposed evaluation. We hope that the results from the forthcoming evaluation may help to inform other Caribbean countries considering similar taxes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]