Tobacco.org

Warped Priorities 

A snapshot of the cost of tobacco addiction in LAC: yesterday Brazil's Getulio Vargas Foundation (Fundação Getulio Vargas - FGV) released research results showing that Brazilian households now spend more on cigarettes than on rice and beans, the staple of the Brazilian diet. . . .

The POF project found that in April 2007 Brazilian families with incomes between 1 and 33 official minimum salaries (R$380-12,540) spent 1.25% of their family budget buying cigarettes, but only 0.85% on rice and beans. By contrast, back in 2002-03 (when a comprehensive national survey of households was last undertaken in order to set the baseline) Brazilian families spent 1.03% on cigarettes but 1.3% on rice and beans. Since then the price of cigarettes has risen (while that of rice and beans has dropped), but families do not seem to be cutting back on cigarette purchases.

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