A Model Depicting the Retail Food Environment and Customer Interactions: Components, Outcomes, and Future Directions

Megan R. Winkler, Shannon N. Zenk, Barbara Baquero, Elizabeth Anderson Steeves, Sheila E. Fleischhacker, Joel Gittelsohn, Lucia A Leone and Elizabeth F. Racine
Additional contact information
Megan R. Winkler: Division of Epidemiology and Community Health, University of Minnesota School of Public Health, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
Shannon N. Zenk: Department of Population Health Nursing Science, University of Illinois Chicago, Chicago, IL 60612, USA
Barbara Baquero: Department of Health Services, University of Washington School of Public Health, Seattle, WA 98198, USA
Elizabeth Anderson Steeves: Department of Nutrition, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA
Sheila E. Fleischhacker: Law Center, Georgetown University, Washington, DC 20001, USA
Joel Gittelsohn: Center for Human Nutrition, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
Lucia A Leone: Department of Community Health and Health Behavior, School of Public Health and Health Professions, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY 14214, USA
Elizabeth F. Racine: Department of Public Health Sciences, University of North Carolina, Charlotte, NC 28223, USA

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 20, 1-21

Abstract: The retail food environment (RFE) has important implications for dietary intake and health, and dramatic changes in RFEs have been observed over the past few decades and years. Prior conceptual models of the RFE and its relationships with health and behavior have played an important role in guiding research; yet, the convergence of RFE changes and scientific advances in the field suggest the time is ripe to revisit this conceptualization. In this paper, we propose the Retail Food Environment and Customer Interaction Model to convey the evolving variety of factors and relationships that convene to influence food choice at the point of purchase. The model details specific components of the RFE, including business approaches, actors, sources, and the customer retail experience; describes individual, interpersonal, and household characteristics that affect customer purchasing; highlights the macro-level contexts (e.g., communities and nations) in which the RFE and customers behave; and addresses the wide-ranging outcomes produced by RFEs and customers, including: population health, food security, food justice, environmental sustainability, and business sustainability. We believe the proposed conceptualization helps to (1) provide broad implications for future research and (2) further highlight the need for transdisciplinary collaborations to ultimately improve a range of critical population outcomes.

Keywords: grocery store; restaurant; environment; retail; food purchasing behavior; dietary intake (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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