Hostname: page-component-848d4c4894-4rdrl Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-07-05T06:11:57.712Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Supermarket sales data: a tool for measuring regional differences in dietary habits

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2007

Maria Närhinen ,
Mari-Anna Berg ,
Aulikki Nissinen  and
Pekka Puska
Maria Närhinen*
Affiliation:
Department of Public Health and General Practice, University of Kuopio, Finland
Mari-Anna Berg
Affiliation:
Department of Epidemiology and Health Promotion, National Public Health Institute, Finland
Aulikki Nissinen
Affiliation:
Department of Public Health and General Practice, University of Kuopio, Finland
Pekka Puska
Affiliation:
Department of Epidemiology and Health Promotion, National Public Health Institute, Finland
*
*Corresponding author: Fax +358 152011799
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.
Objective

To assess how well supermarket sales data from a major supermarket chain can reflect on regional differences in dietary behaviour by comparing the sales data with the results provided by the annual health behaviour surveys.

Design

Cross-sectional observational study.

Setting

The study was carried out in six Finnish cities situated in different parts of Finland. For the study supermarket sales data of milk, sour milk, fats and oils for 1 month, September 1997, were obtained from eight supermarkets. Proportional sales of different types of dairy products were calculated as well as mean salt and fat per cent and the proportion of saturated fat to total fat. The health behaviour surveys from spring 1995, 1996 and 1997 provided information about dietary habits of the adult population in the cities. The reported use of dairy products was compared with the percentage sales.

Results

The proportional sales of dairy products varied between the cities. In Pori in western Finland the sale of milk fat was highest in all food groups. In Oulu, northern Finland, the sale of non-fat milk was high. In the capital region the sale of oil was highest. Regional differences could also be seen in the survey data. The similarity between the two different datasets was high.

Conclusions

The use of supermarket sales data for assessing regional differences in health behaviour is feasible. The challenge will be to get supermarket managers willing to provide sales data on a routine basis for monitoring and research.

Keywords

Dietary fatDietary saltSales dataSupermarkets
Type
Research Article
Information
Public Health Nutrition , Volume 2 , Issue 3 , March 1999 , pp. 277 - 282
Copyright
Copyright © CABI Publishing 1999

References

1World Health Organization. Healthy Nutrition. Preventing Nutrition-related Diseases in Europe. WHO Regional Publications, European Series, No. 24. Copenhagen: WHO, 1988.Google Scholar
2World Health Organization. Diet, Nutrition and Prevention of Chronic Diseases. WHO Technical Report Series No. 797. Geneva: WHO, 1990.Google Scholar
3Puska, P, Tuomilehto, J, Nissinen, A, Vartiainen, E, eds. The North Karelia Project: 20 Year Results and Experiences. Helsinki: National Public Health Institute, 1995.Google Scholar
4Pietinen, P, Vartiainen, E, Seppänen, R, Aro, A, Puska, P. Changes in diet in Finland from 1972 to 1992: impact on, coronary heart disease risk. Prev. Med. 1996; 25: 243–50.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
5Vartiainen, E, Puska, P, Jousilahti, P, Korhonen, HJ, Tuomilehto, J, Nissinen, A. Twenty-year trends in coronary risk factors in North Karelia and in other areas of Finland. Int. J. Epidemiol. 1994; 23(3): 495–504.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
6Vartiainen, E, Puska, P, Pekkanen, J, Tuomilehto, J, Jousilahti, P. Changes in risk factors explain changes in mortality from ischaemic heart disease in Finland. BMJ 1994; 309: 23–7.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
7The 1997 Dietary Survey of Finnish Adults. Publications of the National Public Health Institute No. B8/1998. Helsinki: National Public Health Institute, 1998.Google Scholar
8Finnish Nutrition Recommendations. Committee Report No. 1998: 7. Helsinki: National Nutrition Council, 1998.Google Scholar
9Nordic nutrition recommendations. Scand. J. Nutr. 1996; 40: 161–5.Google Scholar
10Kleemola, P, Virtanen, M, Pietinen, P. The 1992 Dietary Survey of Finnish Adults. Publications of the National Public Health Institute No. B2/1994. Helsinki: National Public Health Institute, 1994.Google Scholar
11Vartiainen, E, Jousilahti, P, Juolevi, A, et al. Finriski. Publications of the National Public Health Institute No. B1/1998. Helsinki: National Public Health Institute, 1998.Google Scholar
12Helakorpi, S, Uutela, A, Prättälä, R, Berg, M-A, Puska, P. Health Behaviour among Finnish Adult Population, Spring 1997. Publications of the National Public Health Institute No. B10/1997. Helsinki: National Public Health Institute, 1997.Google Scholar
13Lahti-Koski, M. Annual Nutrition Report 1996. Publications of the National Public Health Institute No. B1/1997. Helsinki: National Public Health Institute, 1997.Google Scholar
14Balance Sheets for Food Commodities 1996 (Preliminary) and 1990–1995. Helsinki: Information Centre of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, 1997.Google Scholar
15Cheadle, A, Psaty, BM, Diehr, P, et al. Evaluating community-based nutrition programmes: comparing grocery store and individual-level survey measures of programme impact. Prev. Med. 1995; 24: 71–9.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
16Den Hond, EM, Lesaffre, EE, Kesteloot, HE. Regional differences in consumption of 103 fat products in Belgium: a supermarket-chain sales approach. J. Am. Coll. Nutr. 1995; 14(6): 621–7.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
17Närhinen, M, Nissinen, A, Puska, P. Sales data of a supermarket—a tool for monitoring nutrition interventions. Public Health Nutr. 1998; 1(2): 101–7.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
18Nyberg, T. EAN Information for the Industry. EKT Series 829. Helsinki: University of Helsinki, Department of Food Chemistry and Technology, 1990.Google Scholar
19Prättälä, R, Berg, M-A, Puska, P. Diminishing or increasing contrasts? Social class variation in Finnish food consumption patterns, 1979–1990. Eur. J. Clin. Nutr. 1992; 46: 279–87.Google ScholarPubMed