Table A1.
Follow-up survey participant (n = 26) mean rankings of research questions in terms of feasibility, equity, and importance.
| Key Issue Area | Research Question | Feasibility | Equity | Importance | Composite |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Understanding the Current Food Retail Environment and Consumer Behavior | |||||
| Understanding and describing the retail food marketing environment | How does the healthfulness of foods and beverages available in retail outlets differ by retail format? | 4.35 | 3.62 | 3.35 | 3.77 |
| How does the healthfulness of foods and beverages promoted in retail outlets differ by retail format? | 4.12 | 4.00 | 3.81 | 3.97 | |
| What are the effects of manufacturer trade promotion practices on retailer practices? | 2.52 | 3.60 | 3.88 | 3.36 | |
| How important is revenue from trade promotion to retailers? (e.g., what proportion of total revenue comes from trade promotion?) * | 2.26 | 3.04 | 3.44 | 2.93 | |
| How do frequency and duration of retailer promotions differ by… | |||||
| community characteristics (e.g., race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status)? | 3.77 | 4.50 | 4.15 | 4.14 | |
| time of month (e.g., when SNAP benefits are issued)? | 3.65 | 4.27 | 4.08 | 4.00 | |
| product characteristics (e.g., healthfulness, category)? | 3.92 | 3.40 | 3.36 | 3.56 | |
| retail format (e.g., supermarkets vs. convenience stores)? | 3.72 | 3.36 | 3.08 | 3.39 | |
| retail ordering platform (e.g., brick-and-mortar vs. online)? | 3.48 | 3.31 | 3.50 | 3.43 | |
| geography (e.g., urban vs. rural)? | 3.88 | 3.85 | 3.54 | 3.76 | |
| Understanding consumer shopping behavior | Which factors influence consumer decision-making at the point of purchase? | 4.04 | 3.62 | 3.73 | 3.79 |
| Which factors influence where consumers shop (e.g., shopping at a dollar store vs. supermarket)? | 4.00 | 3.81 | 3.46 | 3.76 | |
| Impact of retailer marketing strategies | What are the impacts of retailer marketing strategies on… | ||||
| consumer behaviors (e.g., purchasing, impulse buying, stockpiling)? | 3.50 | 3.69 | 4.04 | 3.74 | |
| consumer health (e.g., diet quality, body mass index, overweight/obesity)? | 2.54 | 3.88 | 4.31 | 3.58 | |
| outcomes of importance to retailers (e.g., sales, profitability, brand loyalty)? | 2.92 | 2.85 | 3.80 | 3.18 | |
| How do the impacts of retailer marketing strategies differ by… | |||||
| consumer characteristics (e.g., race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, participation in federal nutrition programs)? | 3.46 | 4.52 | 4.40 | 4.14 | |
| time of month (e.g., when SNAP benefits are issued)? | 3.52 | 4.12 | 4.12 | 3.92 | |
| product characteristics (e.g., healthfulness, category)? | 3.60 | 3.20 | 3.36 | 3.39 | |
| retail format (e.g., supermarkets vs. convenience stores)? * | 3.40 | 3.08 | 2.96 | 3.15 | |
| retail ordering platform (e.g., brick-and-mortar vs. online)? * | 3.29 | 2.84 | 3.40 | 3.18 | |
| geography (e.g., urban vs. rural)? | 3.22 | 3.70 | 3.48 | 3.46 | |
| Understanding targeted food marketing | To what extent do retailers create targeted promotions based on customer characteristics (e.g., race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, participation in federal nutrition programs)? | 3.00 | 4.48 | 4.52 | 4.01 |
| Which food or beverage manufacturers and food categories have deceptive marketing or front-of-package claims? | 4.00 | 3.32 | 3.52 | 3.61 | |
| Role of emerging retail formats in supporting healthy food access | How do dollar stores affect a community’s access to healthful food? | 3.64 | 4.31 | 4.08 | 4.01 |
| Implementation and Effectiveness of Interventions and Policies to Attain Healthier Retail | |||||
| Supporting healthy purchases and reducing unhealthy purchases | What is the optimal design of a retail environment to support healthy eating? | 2.74 | 3.74 | 4.30 | 3.59 |
| What changes to retailer marketing strategies improve the healthfulness of food purchases? | 3.09 | 3.91 | 4.22 | 3.74 | |
| What changes to product packaging, labeling, and/or portion size improve the healthfulness of food purchases? | 3.26 | 3.52 | 3.78 | 3.52 | |
| What are effective digital strategies to improve the healthfulness of food purchases? | 3.61 | 3.61 | 3.91 | 3.71 | |
| Leveraging SNAP to support healthy eating | What is the impact of increasing the SNAP benefit amount? | 3.70 | 4.74 | 4.52 | 4.32 |
| What is the impact of changing the frequency and/or timing of SNAP distribution (e.g., benefits issued twice per month or benefits issued on different days of the month)? | 3.35 | 4.17 | 3.83 | 3.78 | |
| What is the impact of changing the list of products eligible for purchase with SNAP (e.g., sugar-sweetened beverages)? | 3.30 | 4.22 | 4.35 | 3.96 | |
| What is the impact of offering produce boxes to SNAP beneficiaries? | 3.48 | 3.74 | 3.43 | 3.55 | |
| What is the impact of providing incentives for healthy foods for SNAP beneficiaries (e.g., discounts or matching dollars for purchases of whole grains, fruits and vegetables)? | 3.96 | 4.43 | 4.09 | 4.16 | |
| Limiting unhealthy food establishments | How do zoning restrictions for unhealthy food retailers impact access to healthy food in the community? | 2.61 | 3.83 | 3.70 | 3.38 |
| Addressing social determinants of health | How do interventions or policies that address social determinants of health (e.g., universal basic income, increased minimum wage) impact food and beverage purchasing and consumption? | 2.52 | 4.73 | 4.59 | 3.93 |
| Assessing differential impacts | How do the impacts of interventions and policies differ by… | ||||
| consumer characteristics (e.g., race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, participation in federal nutrition programs)? | 3.65 | 4.30 | 4.30 | 4.09 | |
| product characteristics (e.g., healthfulness, category)? | 3.70 | 3.00 | 3.26 | 3.32 | |
| retail format (e.g., supermarkets vs. convenience stores)? | 3.78 | 3.26 | 3.30 | 3.45 | |
| retail ordering platform (e.g., brick-and-mortar vs. online)? | 3.36 | 3.26 | 3.57 | 3.40 | |
| geography (e.g., urban vs. rural)? | 3.70 | 4.00 | 3.78 | 3.83 | |
* Indicates question was eliminated due to low composite score or low score for equity or importance (<3).