Does minimum pricing reduce alcohol consumption? The experience of a Canadian province

Aims: Minimum alcohol prices in British Columbia have been adjusted intermittently over the past 20 years. The present study estimates impacts of these adjustments on alcohol consumption. Design: Time–series and longitudinal models of aggregate alcohol consumption with price and other economic data...

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Main Authors: Stockwell, Tim, Auld, M., Zhao, J., Martin, G.
Format: Journal Article
Published: 2012
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/31856
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author Stockwell, Tim
Auld, M.
Zhao, J.
Martin, G.
author_facet Stockwell, Tim
Auld, M.
Zhao, J.
Martin, G.
author_sort Stockwell, Tim
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description Aims: Minimum alcohol prices in British Columbia have been adjusted intermittently over the past 20 years. The present study estimates impacts of these adjustments on alcohol consumption. Design: Time–series and longitudinal models of aggregate alcohol consumption with price and other economic data as independent variables. Setting: British Columbia (BC), Canada. Participants: The population of British Columbia, Canada, aged 15 years and over. Measurements: Data on alcohol prices and sales for different beverages were provided by the BC Liquor Distribution Branch for 1989–2010. Data on household income were sourced from Statistics Canada. Findings: Longitudinal estimates suggest that a 10% increase in the minimum price of an alcoholic beverage reduced its consumption relative to other beverages by 16.1% (P < 0.001). Time–series estimates indicate that a 10% increase in minimum prices reduced consumption of spirits and liqueurs by 6.8% (P = 0.004), wine by 8.9% (P = 0.033), alcoholic sodas and ciders by 13.9% (P = 0.067), beer by 1.5% (P = 0.043) and all alcoholic drinks by 3.4% (P = 0.007). Conclusions: Increases in minimum prices of alcoholic beverages can substantially reduce alcohol consumption.
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-318562017-09-13T15:17:11Z Does minimum pricing reduce alcohol consumption? The experience of a Canadian province Stockwell, Tim Auld, M. Zhao, J. Martin, G. Aims: Minimum alcohol prices in British Columbia have been adjusted intermittently over the past 20 years. The present study estimates impacts of these adjustments on alcohol consumption. Design: Time–series and longitudinal models of aggregate alcohol consumption with price and other economic data as independent variables. Setting: British Columbia (BC), Canada. Participants: The population of British Columbia, Canada, aged 15 years and over. Measurements: Data on alcohol prices and sales for different beverages were provided by the BC Liquor Distribution Branch for 1989–2010. Data on household income were sourced from Statistics Canada. Findings: Longitudinal estimates suggest that a 10% increase in the minimum price of an alcoholic beverage reduced its consumption relative to other beverages by 16.1% (P < 0.001). Time–series estimates indicate that a 10% increase in minimum prices reduced consumption of spirits and liqueurs by 6.8% (P = 0.004), wine by 8.9% (P = 0.033), alcoholic sodas and ciders by 13.9% (P = 0.067), beer by 1.5% (P = 0.043) and all alcoholic drinks by 3.4% (P = 0.007). Conclusions: Increases in minimum prices of alcoholic beverages can substantially reduce alcohol consumption. 2012 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/31856 10.1111/j.1360-0443.2011.03763.x restricted
spellingShingle Stockwell, Tim
Auld, M.
Zhao, J.
Martin, G.
Does minimum pricing reduce alcohol consumption? The experience of a Canadian province
title Does minimum pricing reduce alcohol consumption? The experience of a Canadian province
title_full Does minimum pricing reduce alcohol consumption? The experience of a Canadian province
title_fullStr Does minimum pricing reduce alcohol consumption? The experience of a Canadian province
title_full_unstemmed Does minimum pricing reduce alcohol consumption? The experience of a Canadian province
title_short Does minimum pricing reduce alcohol consumption? The experience of a Canadian province
title_sort does minimum pricing reduce alcohol consumption? the experience of a canadian province
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/31856