Make It Fresh, for Less! A Supermarket Meal Bundling and Electronic Reminder Intervention to Promote Healthy Purchases Among Families With Children

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate the effects of a supermarket meal bundling and electronic reminder intervention on food choices of families with children.

Design: Quasi-experimental (meal bundling) and randomized, controlled trial (electronic reminders).

Setting: Large supermarket in Maine during 40-week baseline and 16-week intervention periods in 2015-2016.

Participants: English-speaking adults living with at least 1 child aged ≤18 years (n = 300) with 25% of households participating in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

Intervention(s): (1) Four bundles of ingredients needed to make 8 low-cost healthful meals were promoted in the store through displays and point-of-purchase messaging for 4 weeks each; (2) weekly electronic messages based on principles from behavioral psychology were sent to study participants reminding them to look for meal bundles in the store.

Main outcome measures: (1) Difference in storewide sales and individual purchases of bundled items (measured using supermarket loyalty card data) from baseline to intervention in intervention vs control groups.

Analysis: Regressions controlling for total food spending and accounting for repeated measures.

Results: There were no differences in spending on bundled items resulting from the meal bundling intervention or the electronic reminders.

Conclusions and implications: Overall, there was little impact of healthful meal bundles and electronic reminders on storewide sales or purchases of promoted items in a large supermarket.

Keywords: SNAP; behavioral economics; fruits and vegetables; randomized controlled trial.