IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/pra/mprapa/64994.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Deconstructing Supermarket Interventions as a Mechanism for Improving Diet: Lessons from the Seacroft Intervention Study

Author

Listed:
  • Rudkin, Simon

Abstract

Supermarkets, with vast product ranges and relatively low prices, are an established solution to problems of availability of healthy foodstuffs in areas of limited retail access. However, where they may indeed raise consumption of desirable goods they also open up new opportunities to buy less healthful items for less, a situation which potentially undermines their ability to improve diet. Using under-reported diary data from the Seacroft Intervention Study in the United Kingdom takes this paper beyond the extant fruit and vegetable focus, giving it scope to explore the full effect of supermarkets. Quantile regressions show existing behaviours are reinforced, and intervention stores may do little to improve diet. Switching to Tesco Seacroft is shown to increase the portions of unhealthy food consumed by almost 1 portion per day for the least healthy. Managing demand through promoting balanced diets and restricting offers on unhealthy items will be more effective than intervention, and is an essential accompaniment to new large format retailers if they are not to entrench dietary inequality further. Policymakers and practitioners alike should avoided being distracted by aggregate conclusions if food deserts are to be truly tackled.

Suggested Citation

  • Rudkin, Simon, 2015. "Deconstructing Supermarket Interventions as a Mechanism for Improving Diet: Lessons from the Seacroft Intervention Study," MPRA Paper 64994, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    • Handle: RePEc:pra:mprapa:64994
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/64994/1/MPRA_paper_64994.pdf
    File Function: original version
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Kang Ernest Liu & Hung‐Hao Chang & Wen S. Chern, 2011. "Examining changes in fresh fruit and vegetable consumption over time and across regions in urban China," China Agricultural Economic Review, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 3(3), pages 276-296, September.
    2. Ljungvall, Åsa & Zimmerman, Frederick J., 2012. "Bigger bodies: Long-term trends and disparities in obesity and body-mass index among U.S. adults, 1960–2008," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 75(1), pages 109-119.
    3. Neil Wrigley & Cliff Guy & Michelle Lowe, 2002. "Urban Regeneration, Social Inclusion and Large Store Development: The Seacroft Development in Context," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 39(11), pages 2101-2114, October.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Andrea L. Sparks & Neil Bania & Laura Leete, 2011. "Comparative Approaches to Measuring Food Access in Urban Areas," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 48(8), pages 1715-1737, June.
    2. Robert Baldock & David North & Ian Vickers, 2015. "Sub-post offices and high street revitalisation: Lessons from the experience of grant assistance to sub-post offices in deprived urban areas of the UK," Local Economy, London South Bank University, vol. 30(4), pages 435-451, June.
    3. Shaleen Singhal & Jim Berry & Stanley McGreal, 2009. "A Framework for Assessing Regeneration, Business Strategies and Urban Competitiveness," Local Economy, London South Bank University, vol. 24(2), pages 111-124, March.
    4. Andy Gouldson & Rory Sullivan, 2014. "Understanding the Governance of Corporations: An Examination of the Factors Shaping UK Supermarket Strategies on Climate Change," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 46(12), pages 2972-2990, December.
    5. Hermanus Geyer Jr, 2011. "The Retail City in Greater Birmingham – The changing face of urban retail districts as a result of retail-led regeneration and containment policy," ERSA conference papers ersa11p1358, European Regional Science Association.
    6. Cristina Mateos-Mora & María Rosa Herrera-Gutiérrez & Cristina González-Benítez, 2021. "The Impacts of Area-Based Policies on Essential Retail in Vulnerable Areas," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(14), pages 1-17, July.
    7. Cummins, Steven & Findlay, Anne & Petticrew, Mark & Sparks, Leigh, 2008. "Retail-led regeneration and store-switching behaviour," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 15(4), pages 288-295.
    8. Alex M. Mutebi, 2007. "Regulatory Responses to Large-format Transnational Retail in South-east Asian Cities," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 44(2), pages 357-379, February.
    9. Grazia Brunetta & Ombretta Caldarice, 2014. "Self-organisation and retail-led regeneration: A new territorial governance within the Italian context," Local Economy, London South Bank University, vol. 29(4-5), pages 334-344, June.
    10. Michelle Lowe & Neil Wrigley, 2010. "The “Continuously Morphing” Retail TNC During Market Entry: Interpreting Tesco’s Expansion into the United States," Economic Geography, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 86(4), pages 381-408, October.
    11. John Thompson & Martyn Benson & Peter McDonagh, 2015. "The social and economic impact of improving a town centre: The case of Rotherham," Local Economy, London South Bank University, vol. 30(2), pages 231-248, March.
    12. Rudkin, Simon, 2015. "Supermarket Interventions and Diet in areas of Limited Retail Access: Policy Suggestions from the Seacroft Intervention Study," MPRA Paper 62434, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    13. Dennis, Charles & Alamanos, Eleftherios & Papagiannidis, Savvas & Bourlakis, Michael, 2016. "Does social exclusion influence multiple channel use? The interconnections with community, happiness, and well-being," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 69(3), pages 1061-1070.
    14. Neil Wrigley & Daniel Warm & Barrie Margetts & Amanda Whelan, 2002. "Assessing the Impact of Improved Retail Access on Diet in a 'Food Desert': A Preliminary Report," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 39(11), pages 2061-2082, October.
    15. Adewunmi, Yewande & Chigbu, Uchendu Eugene & Mwando, Sam & Kahireke, Uaurika, 2023. "Entrepreneurship role in the co-production of public services in informal settlements − A scoping review," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 125(C).
    16. Patten, Dennis M. & Zhao, Na, 2014. "Standalone CSR reporting by U.S. retail companies," Accounting forum, Elsevier, vol. 38(2), pages 132-144.
    17. James Simpson & Kevin Thwaites & Megan Freeth, 2019. "Understanding Visual Engagement with Urban Street Edges along Non-Pedestrianised and Pedestrianised Streets Using Mobile Eye-Tracking," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(15), pages 1-17, August.
    18. Yanyan Xu & Miao Liu & Yuanman Hu & Chunlin Li & Zaiping Xiong, 2019. "Analysis of Three-Dimensional Space Expansion Characteristics in Old Industrial Area Renewal Using GIS and Barista: A Case Study of Tiexi District, Shenyang, China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(7), pages 1-22, March.
    19. Laura Wolf-Powers, 2017. "Food Deserts and Real-Estate-Led Social Policy," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 41(3), pages 414-425, May.
    20. Steven Cummins & Anne Findlay & Cassie Higgins & Mark Petticrew & Leigh Sparks & Hilary Thomson, 2008. "Reducing Inequalities in Health and Diet: Findings from a Study on the Impact of a Food Retail Development," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 40(2), pages 402-422, February.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    retail intervention; food deserts; diet; healthy eating;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D12 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Consumer Economics: Empirical Analysis
    • I14 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health and Inequality
    • I18 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:pra:mprapa:64994. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Joachim Winter (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/vfmunde.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.