Food fortification is one of the most rapid, cost-effective, scalable and evidence-based impactful strategies to reach hundreds of millions to combat micronutrient malnutrition, when delivered as intended (Horton, 2006, Keats et al., 2019; Mbuya et al., 2020; Saha et al, 2021). However, the constraints for fortification programs include poor compliance and regulatory enforcement.
Compliance fortification is largely neutral to consumer behaviour change – future policy options to support adherence to food fortification mandates could bring the firm side and consumer end closer by exploring taxation such as ‘tax earmarking’, creating a transparent link between a funding source and exactly what it is spent on.
This project will generate evidence that will address the objective of conceptualisation of earmarked taxes to support food fortification. The overarching goal is to identify how policy levers such as earmarked taxes can discourage non-compliance, strengthen governments ability so that their fortification mandates are complied with and improve fortification coverage. It is based on a mixed methods approach combining structured review of evidence, comparative case studies, and experimental methods, using theory-based propositions building on the food fortification and tax literature.
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