The healthfulness of foods and beverages found in retail food stores differs widely across the United States, both by location of the store as well as by store type. Some communities have limited access to stores that carry healthful staple foods such as fruits and vegetables, whole grain-rich foods, and low-fat dairy products, and these limitations likely contribute, at least in part, to disparities in diet and health. Strategies to increase healthy food availability, visibility, and affordability in food stores, particularly in small food stores such as convenience stores, pharmacies, and dollar stores, have been proposed as a means of increasing overall access to healthy foods. This report identifies basic, minimum stocking levels for healthful foods and beverages structured around food categories and nutrition guidelines in the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, and marketing strategies for product placement, promotion, and pricing that retail food stores should adopt to enhance sales of healthful foods. The recommendations included in this report were developed by a national panel of experts in food retail, nutrition, and obesity prevention convened by Healthy Eating Research.

Slides for a webinar held on February 10, 2016 are available here: Webinar Slides

An audio and visual recording of the webinar is available here: Webinar Recording