Introduction: Pacifi c Islands Countries and Territories (PICTs) have
some of the highest rates of obesity and diabetes in the world. Research
has demonstrated a strong link between sugar-sweetened beverage
(SSB) consumption and subsequent risk of overweight, obesity, dental
caries and type II diabetes. To address the impact of SSBs on noncommunicable
diseases, it is crucial to understand the level of SSB
consumption in PICTs.
Methods: The volume of soft drinks imported and exported was
requested from PICTs to estimate the litres of soft drink consumption
per head of population. Analysis was confi ned to PICTs who did not
produce their own soft drinks because production data was limited.
The Harmonised Commodity Description and Coding System (HS)
category 22.02 was used which includes both diet and sugar-sweetened
soft drinks. The trade data estimates were then compared with school
survey data to explore how the data sources corresponded given the
strengths and weaknesses of each.
Results: Soft drink import volumes were a feasible way of estimating
total soft drink consumption in PICTs and look at trends over time.
Seven out of eleven non-producing PICTs contacted were able to
provide volume of soft drinks imported. In 2011, estimates of soft drink
consumption per person were 84L in Palau, 47L in the Commonwealth
of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), 41L in Niue, 31L in Tonga, 22L in
Federates States of Micronesia, 8L in Tuvalu and 1L in Kiribati.
Conclusions: Trade data is a feasible way of monitoring soft drink
consumption and may be useful to evaluate the impact of changes in
government policy on importation of soft drinks. Data quality could be
maximised by including export data, adjusting for visitor numbers and
cross-checking exports from corresponding countries. To monitor SSB
consumption, a wider range of categories could be included such as
categories for sugar-sweetened juice and sweetened-milk drinks.