Assessment of Healthy Food Availability and Promotion Among Baltimore, Maryland Corner Stores

Abstract

ObjectivesUnder-resourced neighborhoods in Baltimore, Maryland tend to have low healthy food availability. Residents of these neighborhoods often frequent corner stores, which are ubiquitous and primarily stock energy-dense foods and sugar-sweetened beverages. The Baltimore Urban food Distribution (BUD) trial aims to improve access to healthy foods by corner store owners and their customers. As part of the baseline assessment of BUD, this study aims to (1) measure the pre-intervention availability of promoted foods and beverages (fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low-sugar beverages) at participating corner stores; and (2) describe current promotional strategies used by participating corner store owners for healthy foods and beverages. MethodsWe expect to have baseline data from 38 corner stores recruited to participate in BUD by April 2022. During data collection, trained researchers will conduct in-depth interviews and a Store Environmental Checklist based on similar tools used in the previous B’more Healthy Communities for Kids (BHCK) trial. Subsequently, corner store Healthy Food Availability Index (HFAI) scores will be analyzed quantitatively using Stata, and qualitative data regarding promotional strategies will be analyzed using Atlas.ti. ResultsAt the time BHCK was implemented, Baltimore corner stores had a low average HFAI score of 9.1 out of 28.5. Now, nearly a decade later, it is crucial to understand the current landscape of healthy food availability in order to inform the context in which BUD is intervening. Regarding promotional practices, we expect to see corner stores having a larger social media presence. A recent uptake of social media use among corner store owners could signify greater acceptance of technology, and a new medium for customer engagement and promotion of foods. Further quantitative and qualitative analyses will be completed by late Spring 2022. ConclusionsThe gap in healthy food availability among corner stores compared to supermarkets is well-documented, especially in under-resourced urban settings. Recent advances in the use of social media and greater acceptance of technology by small store owners is promising. Our findings here will help to inform the strategies undertaken by the BUD intervention in an upcoming randomized controlled trial. Funding SourcesNHLBI, NIH, award number R34HL145368.