Abstract
To compare the cost and affordability of two fortnightly diets (representing the national guidelines and current consumption) across areas containing Australia's major supermarkets. The Healthy Diets Australian Standardised Affordability and Pricing protocol was used. Price data were collected online and via phone calls in fifty-one urban and inner regional locations across Australia. Not applicable. Healthy diets were consistently less expensive than current (unhealthy) diets. Nonetheless, healthy diets would cost 25-26 % of the disposable income for low-income households and 30-31 % of the poverty line. Differences in gross incomes (the most available income metric which overrepresents disposable income) drove national variations in diet affordability (from 14 % of the median gross household incomes in the Australian Capital Territory and Northern Territory to 25 % of the median gross household income in Tasmania). In Australian cities and regional areas with major supermarkets, access to affordable diets remains problematic for families receiving low incomes. These findings are likely to be exacerbated in outer regional and remote areas (not included in this study). To make healthy diets economically appealing, policies that reduce the (absolute and relative) costs of healthy diets and increase the incomes of Australians living in poverty are required.
Highlights
We aimed to address this gap by upscaling our reliable lower-resource price monitoring methods to determine whether the cost, cost differential and affordability of healthy and current diets varied across areas where major supermarkets are present in Australia
The healthy diets Australian standardised affordability and pricing protocol The current study was guided by the Healthy Diets Australian Standardised Affordability and Pricing (HD-ASAP) protocol for measuring the cost and affordability of healthy and current diets in Australia, which has been described in detail elsewhere[18]
A total of 51 Statistical Area 2 (SA2) were sampled in the current study. This varied across States and Territories, from two eligible SA2s in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) to 10 SA2s in Victoria
Summary
Study design A cross-sectional study was conducted using publicly available food and beverage price data collected online if available (supermarket, alcohol and some fast-food chains) and by phone calls from all other outlets (fast-food chains, independent bakeries, fish and chip shops and convenience stores). Food and beverage price data were collected over a 2-week period in May 2019. This period did not include any festive events, such as Easter, that may have affected the results. The healthy diet reflects the recommendations of the Australian Dietary Guidelines[3] (and comprises forty-three representative foods and beverages across seven food groups). The current (unhealthy) diet reflects mean dietary intakes reported for selected age/gender groups in the National Nutrition and Physical Activity Survey of the Australian Health Survey 2011–2013(19). The current diet comprises the same core items as the healthy diet in different amounts plus thirty-two representative unhealthy foods and beverages in amounts that exceed dietary recommendations (see Table 1). The diets assume that a household currently consumes 0·9 kg of bananas per fortnight compared with 5·5 kg required to meet recommended fruit intakes and 0·6 kg of table sugar compared with no added sugar as per dietary recommendations (specific diet details have been published elsewhere[14])
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
