Dataset Information

Associations between area deprivation and changes in the digital food environment during the COVID-19 pandemic: Longitudinal analysis of three online food delivery platforms.

ABSTRACT: Online food delivery services facilitate access to unhealthy foods and have proliferated during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study explores associations between neighbourhood deprivation and exposure to online food delivery services and changes in exposure by deprivation during the first year of the pandemic. Data on food outlets delivering to 661 postcode districts in London and the North of England in 2020 and 2021 were collected from three online delivery platforms. The association between area deprivation and overall exposure to online food delivery services was moderated by region, with evidence of a positive relationship between count of outlets and deprivation in the North of England, and a negative relationship in London. There was no association between area deprivation and growth of online food delivery services. Associations between neighbourhood deprivation and exposure to the digital food environment vary geographically. Consequently, policies aimed at the digital food environment need to be tailored to the local context.

SUBMITTER: Kalbus A

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9899780 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Associations between area deprivation and changes in the digital food environment during the COVID-19 pandemic: Longitudinal analysis of three online food delivery platforms.

Kalbus Alexandra A Ballatore Andrea A Cornelsen Laura L Greener Robert R Cummins Steven S

Health & place 20230206

Online food delivery services facilitate access to unhealthy foods and have proliferated during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study explores associations between neighbourhood deprivation and exposure to online food delivery services and changes in exposure by deprivation during the first year of the pandemic. Data on food outlets delivering to 661 postcode districts in London and the North of England in 2020 and 2021 were collected from three online delivery platforms. The association between are ...[more]

PMID: 36758447

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Project description:BackgroundOnline food delivery (OFD) platforms offer easy access to an abundance of energy-dense and nutrient-poor takeaway foods and may exacerbate existing unhealthy food environments. Efforts to improve population diets include a range of policy recommendations focused on improving the healthiness of food environments; however, the way in which such policies may apply to OFD platforms is not clear. This paper aimed to synthesise the existing evidence to inform nutrition-related policies applicable to OFD platforms for population health and well-being. A secondary aim was to scan existing nutrition-related policies in Australia and internationally, which have the potential to be applicable to OFD platforms.MethodsSeven electronic databases including Medline, Embase, CINAHL, Business Source Ultimate, Scopus, Web of Science, and Proquest were searched from January 2010 to October 2023. Evidence from studies was mapped to five existing policy domains outlined by the Healthy Food Environment Policy Index (Food-EPI) including (i) food labelling; (ii) food promotion; (iii) food composition and nutritional quality; (iv) food retail; and (v) food pricing. Relevant data sources were searched for currently implemented nutrition-related government policies that may have relevance to OFD platforms.ResultsA total of 2012 records were screened, and 43 studies were included. There were 70 relevant study outcomes across the included studies, which addressed one or more of the 5 domains. Of these, 21 were relevant to 'Food Promotion' (30%), 18 to 'Food Retail' (26%), 15 to 'Food Composition (21%), 11 to 'Food Prices' (16%), and six to 'Food Labelling' (9%). Three existing policies from international jurisdictions (England, Singapore, EU) included OFD platforms, of which one was a voluntary measure. Several existing policies under food labelling have the potential to be amended to include OFD platforms under regulatory definitions.ConclusionOFD platforms have emerged as a disruptor to how people acquire their food and have yet to be widely included in existing nutrition-related policies. Advancing the evidence base to support the design of effective policy actions and mitigate the potential negative health impacts of OFD platforms will support efforts to improve population diets.

Project description:BackgroundOnline food delivery services facilitate 'online' access to food outlets that typically sell lenergy-dense nutrient-poor food. Greater online food outlet access might be related to the use of this purchasing format and living with excess bodyweight, however, this is not known. We aimed to investigate the association between aspects of online food outlet access and online food delivery service use, and differences according to customer sociodemographic characteristics, as well as the association between the number of food outlets accessible online and bodyweight.MethodsIn 2019, we used an automated data collection method to collect data on all food outlets in the UK registered with the leading online food delivery service Just Eat (n = 33,204). We linked this with contemporaneous data on food purchasing, bodyweight, and sociodemographic information collected through the International Food Policy Study (analytic sample n = 3067). We used adjusted binomial logistic, linear, and multinomial logistic regression models to examine associations.ResultsAdults in the UK had online access to a median of 85 food outlets (IQR: 34-181) and 85 unique types of cuisine (IQR: 64-108), and 15.1% reported online food delivery service use in the previous week. Those with the greatest number of accessible food outlets (quarter four, 182-879) had 71% greater odds of online food delivery service use (OR: 1.71; 95% CI: 1.09, 2.68) compared to those with the least (quarter one, 0-34). This pattern was evident amongst adults with a university degree (OR: 2.11; 95% CI: 1.15, 3.85), adults aged between 18 and 29 years (OR: 3.27, 95% CI: 1.59, 6.72), those living with children (OR: 1.94; 95% CI: 1.01; 3.75), and females at each level of increased exposure. We found no association between the number of unique types of cuisine accessible online and online food delivery service use, or between the number of food outlets accessible online and bodyweight.ConclusionsThe number of food outlets accessible online is positively associated with online food delivery service use. Adults with the highest education, younger adults, those living with children, and females, were particularly susceptible to the greatest online food outlet access. Further research is required to investigate the possible health implications of online food delivery service use.

Dataset Information

Associations between area deprivation and changes in the digital food environment during the COVID-19 pandemic: Longitudinal analysis of three online food delivery platforms.

Publications

Associations between area deprivation and changes in the digital food environment during the COVID-19 pandemic: Longitudinal analysis of three online food delivery platforms.

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