{"id":2171,"date":"2021-05-06T08:42:17","date_gmt":"2021-05-06T12:42:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/globalfoodresearchprogram.web.unc.edu\/?p=2171"},"modified":"2022-01-10T18:04:02","modified_gmt":"2022-01-10T23:04:02","slug":"innovative-online-grocery-store-model-takes-nutrition-research-to-a-new-level-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.globalfoodresearchprogram.org\/innovative-online-grocery-store-model-takes-nutrition-research-to-a-new-level-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Innovative online grocery store takes nutrition research to a new level"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Researchers have developed a new online store that can be used for testing the impact of different policies and interventions on consumers\u2019 purchasing behavior. Lola\u2019s Grocery was designed to have the look and feel of a typical modern online grocery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Users can search for a bag of organic Gala apples or a carton of white eggs, browse beverages and bakery selections, sort through frozen foods and add it all to a basket. Product descriptions include weights and measurements, detailed nutritional information and accurate imagery. Though Lola\u2019s Grocery isn\u2019t a real grocery store, the shopping experience is as realistic as it gets, making it an innovative tool for studying nutrition policies and for developing interventions based on how participating users make nutrition choices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOur team built this store for a specific study \u2013 to test warning labels and taxes on specific products \u2013 but then we quickly realized that we could use the store to develop and test all types of point-of-purchase policies and interventions. For example, we plan to examine how different \u2018nudges,\u2019 such as swaps or product placements, can be used to promote healthier purchases among parents,\u201d says Lindsey Smith Taillie, PhD<\/a>, <\/strong>an assistant professor of nutrition at the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health<\/a> <\/strong>and a researcher in the Global Food Research Program at UNC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cWe quickly realized that we could use the store to develop and test all types of point-of-purchase policies and interventions.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2014 DR. LINDSEY SMITH TAILLIE<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Taillie and her research team knew there had been little guidance on how best to create an online grocery store platform, and they decided to publish their process in order to help other researchers who were interested in developing similar platforms. Taillie; the paper\u2019s first author Pasquale Rummo, PhD, of New York University\u2019s Grossman School of Medicine; UNC\u2019s Isabella Higgins MPP<\/strong><\/a>, and Annamaria Vesely, MS; University of Edinburgh\u2019s Lindsay Jaacks, PhD; and University of South Carolina\u2019s Christina Chauvenet, PhD<\/strong><\/a>, published \u201cA Standardized Guide to Developing an Online Grocery Store for Testing Nutrition-Related Policies and Interventions in an Online Setting\u201d<\/a> <\/strong>online April 22, 2021, in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sharing their expertise in a guide on how to develop these platforms for experimental research will minimize differences in the experimental studies that are testing similar research questions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOnline shopping was already growing rapidly, but since the pandemic, it has exploded,\u201d says Taillie. \u201cThe fact that this store resembles a real online food retailer, with over 20,000 products, enhances the realism of our experiments. Our hope is that other researchers can use this guide to develop their own online stores as well.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rummo adds, \u201cOur store also provides an opportunity for researchers to test policies and strategies that promote health equity and also mimic real life programs designed to support healthy purchases, such as providing financial incentives for fruit and vegetable purchases to food-insecure customers.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the guide, they outline their process for designing and creating Lola\u2019s Grocery, which included cognitive interviews. Among many considerations, the guide covers:<\/p>\n\n\n\n