Healthy retail strategies implemented in convenience stores have shown to have promising impact on healthy food purchasing and healthy diets. However, additional evidence on specific strategies to promote healthful food purchasing inconvenience stores is needed. One such strategy is creating “healthy check-outs” in small stores. The goal of this project is to implement and rigorously evaluate the impact of the “Healthier Checkout Guidelines” created by Partnership for a Healthier America (PHA) and the Grocery Retailer Academic Collaborative (GRAC) Guidelines in partnership with a convenience store chain. The specific research questions to be addressed include: 1) How does the addition of 6 to 10 healthier items in the checkout space modify the product mix offered in this key retail space? 2) How does the addition of healthier checkout strategies impact the sales of: healthier items at checkout, less healthy items at checkout, and overall store sales?, and 3) Do convenience stores experience decreased revenue due to the loss of slotting fees from less healthy items?. The research team will conduct a randomized control feasibility study. They will use mixed methods to achieve their aims, including 1) qualitative interviews with key informants at the retail partner including store managers; 2) baseline observations of the in-store environment; and 3) analysis of sales data collected from stores in intervention and comparison conditions.
Start Date: January 2018
ID #: CAS047
Principal Investigator: Barbara Baquero, PhD, MPH
Organization: University of Iowa
Project Lead: Barbara Baquero, PhD, MPH
Funding Round: OPC2
Resource Type: Commissioned Research Project Summary
Keywords: Corner store, Nutrition standards
Focus Areas: Food Retail, Pricing & Economics
State: Maine
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