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By Matthew Rees

Food and Health Fact #125: Supermarkets and the selling of sugar-sweetened beverages

Read my recent Wall Street Journal review of "The End of Craving" hereFind all previously published Food and Health Facts here

Americans get an estimated 60 percent of their caloric intake from food and beverages purchased in supermarkets. A recent study revealed the emphasis supermarkets place on selling sugar-sweetened beverages, which are one of the biggest drivers of obesity.

The study, by Center for Science in the Public Interest, involved surveying 16 supermarkets in the Washington, DC metropolitan area and identifying the number of different locations in each store where sugar-sweetened beverages sold. (The beverages were defined as drinks with added caloric sweeteners, such as soda, energy drinks, sports drinks, juice, coffee, milk, and tea.) The study found that these beverages appeared, on average, in 30 different locations within the stores, which also had an average of nine price promotions associated with the beverages. The most common locations for the beverages were at the end of aisles (27.6 percent), center aisles (24 percent), and checkout aisles (19.4 percent). Among the stores surveyed, the highest number of sugary drink displays were at Safeway (58.5) and Giant (55). The lowest were at Aldi (9.5) and Trader Joe’s (8).