Eating Behaviour, Food Purchases
Conditions
Keywords
Obesity, Food pricing, Price promotions
Brief summary
Consumption of out-of-home (OOH) food is associated with significantly greater energy and less-healthy nutrient (i.e. fats, salt and sugar) intake. The price of food is a key consideration of food choice, particularly for individuals of lower socioeconomic position (SEP). Little research to date has examined the causal effect of removing price-based incentives on purchasing behaviour in OOH food settings. One online randomised controlled trial explored the effect of removing three types of price-based incentives individually and in combination, on food choice through a virtual food delivery platform. This study found that energy selection was 7-8% lower when price incentives were removed. While not statistically significant, Bayes factors indicted that data comparing control vs "all promotions removed" conditions were inconclusive (BF10 = 0.55) and therefore could not provide support for the alternative or null hypotheses. A limitation of this study is that the outcome was hypothetical food choice. As participants would not pay for or receive their selected meals, the prices of foods may have been less salient, thus reducing the potential for impact. In the present study, exploring real-world consumer behaviour (as opposed to hypothetical choice) will better determine the potential impact of removing price-based incentives in the OOH food sector.
Detailed description
See attached study protocol for detailed information
Interventions
BEHAVIORALExperimental
Food menus will provided with all three types of price promotions removed
BEHAVIORALControl
Participants will be asked to select a meal from a pizza outlet with all price-based incentives present (value pricing, price reductions, bulk-buy incentives).
Sponsors
University of Liverpool
Liverpool John Moores University
University of Bristol
Economic and Social Research Council, United Kingdom
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
PREVENTION
Masking
DOUBLE (Subject, Investigator)
Masking description
Participants and researchers will not know the group to which individuals have been assigned.
Intervention model description
Participants will be randomly assigned to one of two conditions
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
* Able to order and pay for a takeaway pizza for delivery today or tomorrow * Currently reside in select postcode areas * Manchester (M13 store): M1, M2, M3, M4, M5, M11, M12, M13, M14, M15, M16, M18, M19 * Liverpool (L3 store): L1, L2, L3, L4, L5, L6, L8, L13, L15 * Birmingham (B27 store): B9, B10, B11, B12, B13, B25, B26, B27, B28, B33, B90, B91, B92 * Over the age of 18 years * Report having used food delivery services in the last year
Exclusion criteria
* Partaking in a fast or other restrictive eating (e.g. for religious or health reasons) at time of participation * A previous eating disorder diagnosis * Currently on appetite-suppressing medication * Dietary restrictions/intolerances including: * Gluten-free * Dairy-free * Sugar-free
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Energy consumed per household member | The morning after food orders are placed. | Main participants will select a food order on behalf of their household. The day after receiving their food order, all participants will be asked to estimate the amount of each ordered item that they ate. This information will be used to estimate energy consumed by each household member. |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Total monetary spend per household member | Immediately after food choice | Participants will select their food order. The total monetary value of the food order will be divided by the number of reported household members to get a value of monetary spend per household member. |
| Energy content per household member | Immediately after food choice | Participants will select their food order. The total energy content of the food order will be divided by the number of reported household members to get a value of energy content per household member. |
Countries
United Kingdom
Outcome results
None listed