Impact of fiscal policy on consumption habits of high products in sugars, fats and/or salt in Ecuadorian homes.

This research proposal aims to estimate the impact of the application of some type of tax and/or subsidy on food consumption considered harmful to health, such as those high in sugars, fats and/or salt; To later analyze the effects on the tax collection that would be obtained from the application of said policies. Following the methodology proposed in the specialized literature, elasticities will first be estimated using an almost ideal quadratic demand system (quaids), due to socio -economic stratification. In a second stage, the estimated values of elasticities will be used to calculate the impact of the decrease in the consumption of said foods. The data will be obtained from the National Survey of Income and Expenses of Urban and Rural Households of Ecuador 2011-2012 (Enightur). The application of food taxes considered as harmful constitutes a policy of recent promulgation by public health experts as well as by policy makers. The main argument of these groups is based on the relationship between the consumption of high foods in sugars, fats and/or salt, and the weight gain of the population. In this sense, it is pointed out that taxing this type of products discouraged its consumption, helping to stop the high rates of obesity and overweight, and generating public resources that are directed to the attention of these disorders and the diseases related to them.

XVI UNIVERSITY RESEARCH COMPETITION