Berkeley’s healthy checkout policy reduces soda sales
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In March 2021, Berkeley, California banned sugary drinks and snacks from checkout lanes, and researchers from Boston University School of Public Health and the University of California, Davis studied the impact on shoppers’ purchases.
They examined sales data from Berkeley and three other California cities, Davis, Oakland, and Sacramento, from 2019 to 2023, tracking candy, soda, nuts, seeds, and bottled water.
The study found that soda sales decreased after the policy went into effect and was enforced, and supermarkets saw significant reductions in sales of small-package candy. While overall candy sales increased slightly after the policy’s implementation, sales of healthy snacks like nuts and seeds also rose. Stores with higher compliance, specifically supermarkets, showed the most significant declines in sugary item sales.
Researchers noted that the ordinance allowed stores to move these items to other parts of the store, limiting the policy’s overall impact. The researchers suggest that cities should enforce these policies to see lasting changes in purchasing habits and that broader restrictions on sugary products would yield greater public health benefits. They also point to the potential of a U.S.
Food and Drug Administration rule requiring labels that clearly identify foods high in added sugar or sodium, which could help identify products that shouldn’t be prominently displayed.
