None listed
Conditions
Brief summary
This study aims to improve the healthiness of food and drink options available in sports and recreation settings. Many food outlets in these settings sell unhealthy food and drinks, which can influence people’s food choices and contribute to poor diet and health. The study will test whether providing food retailers with a suite of digital tools can help them make healthier changes. These tools will support retailers to assess their current food offerings, receive tailored recommendations, and monitor progress over time. Food outlets will be randomly assigned to either use the digital tools or continue with their usual practices. The study will compare changes in the availability of healthier drinks and food options, as well as purchasing patterns. It is hypothesised that food outlets using the implementation-supporting digital tools will increase the proportion of healthier food and drink options available and may improve purchasing patterns compared to those continuing standard practice. The findings will help determine whether digital tools can support healthier food environments in community settings and inform future public health strategies.
Interventions
What is the intervention?
Proposed intervention is co-adapted multi-component suite of digital implementation tools designed to help sports and recreation food outlets to create healthier food environments. The package includes:
(1) Filterable Repository of existing international resources (e.g. guidelines, toolkits, strategies) hosted on a website. This is an online dashboard containing existing tools and resources for healthy food retail that outlets can search and filter by topic, setting,
What is the intervention? Proposed intervention is co-adapted multi-component suite of digital implementation tools designed to help sports and recreation food outlets to create healthier food environments. The package includes: (1) Filterable Repository of existing international resources (e.g. guidelines, toolkits, strategies) hosted on a website. This is an online dashboard containing existing tools and resources for healthy food retail that outlets can search and filter by topic, setting, and resource type. (2) Café Scout Food Environment Monitoring and Feedback Tool: It is a digital audit tool (accessible on phone, tablet, or computer) for rapid food environment audits, including photographic documentation of food offerings, signage, and pricing. It provides immediate feedback to outlets on their current food environment in term of scores out of 100 and suggests action steps to improve scoring. (3) Step-by-step toolkit adapted from a prior healthcare settings guide, this toolkit provides practical, structured guidance for local implementation of healthier food environment strategies (e.g., menu changes, product positioning, promotional strategies). The tools will be fully developed one month before the intervention start. In sports and recreation settings, there will be total 8 food outlets. 4 will be in the intervention group and 4 will be in the control group. Who delivers it and their relevant expertise? Delivered by the research team led by Dr Miranda Blake (public health nutrition and implementation science) with the student researcher (Urooj Khan) and associate investigators (implementation science and health promotion expertise), supported by the Advisory Group and partners (Health and Wellbeing Queensland; Applied Artificial Intelligence Institute). The team brings expertise in public health nutrition, digital tools, implementation support, stakeholder engagement and evaluation. How it is delivered (mode)? Primarily digital and remote: Café Scout audits completed on phone/tablet/computer; the Repository and toolkit accessed via the online hub (https://healthyfoodretail.com/). How often and for how long (dose/intensity)? Active implementation support is provided across the intervention phase between baseline and the 6-month follow-up, with monitoring continuing to 12 months. Where it is delivered (setting)? Delivered within participating food outlets located in sports and recreation facilities across South-East Queensland. Digital tools are used on-site by outlet staff (devices). Audit photographic documentation is collected on-site. Adherence (reminders, monitoring, fidelity)? Adherence and exposure will be promoted through appointed health promotion practitioners which will go on the site and help the retailers in the use of digital tools and help the implementation process. What this involves for participants (including consultations)? At the start of the intervention, participating outlets will be introduced to the suite of digital tools and provided with guidance on their use via email. Health promotion practitioners will then support implementation of healthy food retail initiatives using these tools through periodic on-site visits throughout the intervention period. The frequency and duration of visits will be at the discretion of the health promotion practitioners.
Sponsors
Deakin University
Study design
Allocation
Randomised controlled trial
Intervention model
Parallel
Primary purpose
Prevention
Masking
Open (masking not used)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
All
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
Food retail outlets located within sports and recreation settings in South-East Queensland, Australia; outlets that are actively operating for at least 10 months per year; have computer systems and internet access to use digital tools; agree to provide aggregated sales data; and have staff able to communicate in English. For qualitative interviews, participants include food outlet staff involved in day-to-day food retail operations (e.g. managers or retailers) and health promotion practitioners involved in supporting healthy food retail practices, who are able to communicate in English and provide informed consent.
Exclusion criteria
Food outlets that operate outside sports and recreation settings; outlets that are seasonal or temporary; outlets unable to support the use of digital tools due to lack of computer systems or internet access; outlets unwilling or unable to provide aggregated sales data; outlets located within stadiums or licensed clubs; and outlets where informed consent cannot be obtained. For qualitative components, individuals who are not involved in food retail operations or healthy food policy implementation, are unable to provide informed consent, or are unable to communicate in English will be excluded.
Outcome results
None listed