The effects of nudging and pricing on healthy food purchasing behavior in a virtual supermarket setting: a randomized experiment

Hoenink, Jody C.; Mackenbach, Joreintje D.; Waterlander, Wilma; Lakerveld, Jeroen; Laan, Laura N. van der; Beulens, Joline W.J.

doi:10.1186/s12966-020-01005-7

Cited by 50 publications

(40 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…Examples of nudges are placing healthy beverages at eye-level and enhancing their visibility using attractive promotion materials, vivid product descriptions, or increasing healthy beverage availability [ 41 , 43 ]. A recent study indeed showed that combining multiple strategies within the supermarket setting is important, as nudges alone did not increase healthy food purchases, while combining pricing strategies (i.e., taxing unhealthy products and subsidizing healthy products) with nudges had the largest impact on healthier purchasing behaviors [ 44 ]. Nutrition labeling initiatives combined with complementary strategies should therefore be implemented and evaluated across multiple food groups within the supermarket to promote a shift towards a healthy dietary pattern [ 45 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The effect of on-shelf sugar labeling on beverage sales in the supermarket: a comparative interrupted time series analysis of a natural experiment

Hoenink

Stuber

Lakerveld

et al. 2021

Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act

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Background Nutrition labels show potential in increasing healthy food and beverage purchases, but their effectiveness seems to depend on the type of label, the targeted food category and the setting, and evidence on their impact in real-world settings is limited. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of an industry-designed on-shelf sugar label on the sales of beverages with no, low, medium and high sugar content implemented within a real-world supermarket. Methods In week 17 of 2019, on-shelf sugar labels were implemented by a Dutch supermarket chain. Non-alcoholic beverages were classified using a traffic-light labeling system and included the beverage categories “green” for sugar free (< 1.25 g/250 ml), “blue” for low sugar (1.25–6.24 g/250 ml), “yellow” for medium sugar (6.25–13.5 g/250 ml) and “amber” for high sugar (> 13.5 g/250 ml). Store-level data on beverage sales and revenue from 41 randomly selected supermarkets for 13 weeks pre-implementation and 21 weeks post-implementation were used for analysis. In total, 30 stores implemented the on-shelf sugar labels by week 17, and the 11 stores that had not were used as comparisons. Outcome measures were differences in the number of beverages sold in the four label categories and the total revenue from beverage sales in implementation stores relative to comparison stores. Analyses were conducted using a multiple-group Interrupted Time Series Approach. Results of individual store data were combined using random effect meta-analyses. Results At the end of the intervention period, the changes in sales of beverages with green (B 3.4, 95%CI -0.3; 7.0), blue (B 0.0, 95%CI -0.6; 0.7), yellow (B 1.3, 95%CI -0.9; 3.5), and amber (B 0.9, 95%CI -5.5; 7.3) labels were not significantly different between intervention and comparison stores. The changes in total revenues for beverages at the end of the intervention period were also not significantly different between intervention and comparison stores. Conclusion The implementation of an on-shelf sugar labeling system did not significantly decrease unhealthy beverage sales or significantly increase healthier beverage sales. Nutrition labeling initiatives combined with complementary strategies, such as pricing strategies or other healthy food nudging approaches, should be considered to promote healthier beverage purchases.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The effect of on-shelf sugar labeling on beverage sales in the supermarket: a comparative interrupted time series analysis of a natural experiment

Hoenink

Stuber

Lakerveld

et al. 2021

Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Data presented in this paper describe the cost, time, and retention rates associated with different recruitment strategies from a larger study investigating the efficacy of nudging and pricing strategies on food purchasing behavior in a virtual supermarket and effect modification by socioeconomic position (SEP). Results of this trial are reported elsewhere [ 17 ] and additional details about the study aims and design are presented in Multimedia Appendix 1 . The study design and procedures for this virtual supermarket study were approved by the Medical Ethics Review Committee of VU University Medical Centre (OHRP: IRB00002911), and all participants provided informed consent.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Recruitment of Participants for a 3D Virtual Supermarket: Cross-sectional Observational Study

Hoenink¹,

Mackenbach²,

Laan³

et al. 2021

JMIR Form Res

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Background Virtual supermarkets offer a practical and affordable setting to test the efficacy of different pricing and nudging strategies before they are implemented in the real world. Despite the advantages of using virtual supermarkets for this purpose, conducting studies in online settings is challenging with regard to recruitment and retention of sufficient and suitable participants. Objective To describe cost, time, and retention with regard to participants recruited using various strategies and potential sociodemographic differences between participants recruited via different strategies. Methods This cross-sectional study used data from a randomized controlled trial in which 455 Dutch adults with low and high educational levels were invited to shop 5 times in a 3D virtual supermarket. Participants were recruited via social media and flyers. A log that tracked the costs of and time spent on the different recruitment strategies was kept by the study team. Outcome measures included the cost of recruitment strategies, the time investment by researchers, and recruitment and attrition rates of participants in the study. Results The median age of study completers was 31.0 (IQR 25.0) and 157 out of 346 study completers (45.4%) were highly educated. Out of the 455 included participants, 235 (51.6%) were recruited via social media campaigns, 131 (28.8%) via home-delivered flyers, 38 (8.4%) via flyers directly distributed by the study team, and 46 (10.1%) via word-of-mouth. Of all paid recruitment strategies, social media campaigns were the cheapest and least time-consuming, whereas the distribution of flyers by the study team was the most expensive and time-consuming recruitment strategy. Age, sex, overweight status, employment situation, and number of adults within the household varied by recruitment strategy. Conclusions Using different recruitment strategies resulted in the efficient recruitment of a representative study sample and retention of participants was relatively high. While “word-of-mouth” was the most cost- and time-effective recruitment strategy, using only one type of recruitment strategy could result in a demographically skewed study population.

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“…In the context of food-territory nudge interventions, tools/instruments that can "stir" people's decisions can include association/articulation with other interventions, namely communication and pricing. A recent study conducted in a virtual supermarket with 346 Dutch participants reports interesting outcomes resulting from different combinations of discounts on healthy products, price increases in unhealthy products, and nudging [57].…”

Section: Practical Implicationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nudging Consumers toward Healthier Food Choices: A Field Study on the Effect of Social Norms

et al. 2021

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Food choices influence the health of individuals, and supermarkets are the place where part of the world population makes their food choices on a daily basis. Different methods to influence food purchasing habits are used, from promotions to food location. However, very few supermarket chains use social norms, the human need to conform to the perceived behavior of the group, to increase healthy food purchase habits. This research seeks to understand how a social norm nudge, a message conveying fruit and vegetable purchasing norms positioned in strategic places, can effectively change food choices. Using data from an intervention in a Portuguese supermarket, the fruit and vegetable purchase quantities of 1636 customers were measured over three months and compared with the corresponding period of the previous year. The results show that the nudge intervention positively affected those whose purchasing habits are categorized as less healthy, while those with healthy habits were slightly negatively affected. Moreover, a follow-up inferential statistical analysis allows us to conclude that applying this intervention at a larger scale would deliver significant financial results for the supermarket chain in which the study took place, by decreasing the costs related to produce perishability while simultaneously improving the health of the consumer and the sustainability of the planet.

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The effects of nudging and pricing on healthy food purchasing behavior in a virtual supermarket setting: a randomized experiment

Cited by 50 publications

References 31 publications

The effect of on-shelf sugar labeling on beverage sales in the supermarket: a comparative interrupted time series analysis of a natural experiment

The effect of on-shelf sugar labeling on beverage sales in the supermarket: a comparative interrupted time series analysis of a natural experiment

Recruitment of Participants for a 3D Virtual Supermarket: Cross-sectional Observational Study

Nudging Consumers toward Healthier Food Choices: A Field Study on the Effect of Social Norms

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