Research & Publications | Healthy Eating Research

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Retail Strategies to Support Healthy Eating

Healthy Eating Research (HER), Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and The Food Trust have developed the first national research agenda focused on healthy food retail. The research agenda is the result of a multi-step process, including commissioned research and a Healthy Retail Research convening, which More

Date: November 2020

Resource Type: Report Special Journal Issue

Focus Areas: Food Access Food Retail

The Role of Chain Pharmacies to Promote Healthy Food Retail: Current Trends, Legal Limits, and Policy Opportunities

Chain drug stores have increased their health care role through expanded pharmacy services and retail health clinics. They also are major food retailers. This creates a tension between health promotion and sales of unhealthy foods and beverages to pharmacy customers. This article explores opportunities to improve the nutritional quality of foods sold at chain drug More

Date: April 2019

Resource Type: Journal Article

Focus Areas: Food Retail

Impact of an Innovative Pricing Manipulation Study on Sales & Purchasing in a Low-Income Urban Community Store

This project will expand an existing study and test different pricing manipulation strategies for both healthy and unhealthy foods and accompanying promotional strategies in a community grocery store. The research team will introduce a series of pricing manipulation strategies on a monthly basis. For each food item, they will identify two healthy and two unhealthy More

Date: March 2019

Resource Type: Commissioned Research Project Summary

Focus Areas: Food Retail

Identifying the effect of shelf nutrition labels on consumer purchases: results of a natural experiment and consumer survey

Shelf nutrition labels provide summary information on the overall nutritional quality of a food product. They provide cues to shoppers and may be effective in promoting healthy food choices at the point of purchase. The objective of this study was to explore the impact of NuVal Labels, a shelf nutrition label that rates the nutritional More

Date: April 2018

Resource Type: Journal Article

Focus Areas: Food Marketing Food Retail

Food Prices Can be Effective in Promoting Sale & Consumption of Healthy Foods & Beverages

This issue brief is based on a review looking at recently published studies (2000-2016) conducted in real-world settings on how changes in food prices can affect access, purchasing, and consumption of foods, especially healthy foods and beverages. The studies focused on individuals or stores in middle- and high-income countries, and food pricing alone or in More

Date: November 2017

Resource Type: Research Brief

Focus Areas: Pricing & Economics

Pricing Strategies to Encourage Availability, Purchase, and Consumption of Healthy Foods and Beverages: A Systematic Review

This review looks at recently published studies (2000-2016) conducted in real-world settings on how changes in food prices can affect access, purchasing, and consumption of foods, especially healthy foods and beverages. The studies focused on individuals or stores in middle- and high-income countries, and food pricing alone or in combination with other strategies (e.g. food More

Date: November 2017

Resource Type: Journal Article

Focus Areas: Pricing & Economics

Deal or No Deal? The Prevalence and Nutritional Quality of Price Promotions Among U.S. Food and Beverage Purchases

This study examines trends in the prevalence of price promotions among packaged food and beverage purchases, differences in prevalence by household race/ethnicity or income, and the association between price promotions and the nutritional profile of purchases. The cross-sectional study uses a dataset of 90 million purchases from 38,744 (2008) to 45,042 (2012) U.S. households in More

Date: August 2017

Resource Type: Journal Article

Focus Areas: Pricing & Economics

Testing Strategies to Reduce Obesity by Increasing Access to and Demand for Affordable, Healthier Food in Retail Groceries in Rural Appalachia

To enhance access to healthier foods, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently proposed new stocking standards for stores eligible to accept Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits. It is unknown how many stores are currently in compliance with the proposed enhanced retailer standards; what support rural stores need to successfully stock and engage families More

Date: November 2016

Resource Type: Grant Summary

Focus Areas: Food Access Food Retail

Impact of Explained v. Unexplained Front-of-Package Nutrition Labels on Parent and Child Food Choices: A Randomized Trial

This study examined the impact of front-of-package (FOP) labels and in-aisle signage identifying and explaining those labels on the healthfulness of foods selected by consumers. 153 parent/child pairs completed the study in a laboratory grocery aisle. Participants were randomly assigned to one of five conditions: (i) Facts up Front labels with in-aisle signs explaining the More

Date: October 2016

Resource Type: Journal Article

Focus Areas: Food Marketing

The Use of Brand Mascots and Media Characters: Opportunities for Responsible Food Marketing to Children

This issue brief examines the evidence on how food, beverage, restaurant, and entertainment companies have used brand mascots and cartoon media characters to influence children’s diet and health. Brand mascots and media characters represent a broad range of human or fictional kid-friendly animals or animated objects used by companies to market their products. Many of More

Date: March 2016

Resource Type: Research Brief

Focus Areas: Food Marketing