Editor's Note: Weight management is a crucial health issue impacting food policy, consumer food trends and food product development strategies.
The issue has many controversial aspects. The following is an Internet version of an article titled, "Taxing Caloric Sweetened Beverages to Curb Obesity," first appearing in the September 2010 issue of Amber Waves, published by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service (ERS). See more information at the end of this article.