Establishing Partnerships with Food Retailers to Conduct Local and Healthy Food Choice Research
Authors: Molly De Marco, PhD, MPH; Leah Chapman, MPH; Nasir Siddique.
Center for Health Promotion & Disease Prevention and Department of Nutrition, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill / December 2016
Food retailers can and should be seen as vital partners as we work to develop local and regional food systems and increase the consumption of nutritious foods. In this brief, we provide insights and strategies for establishing research partnerships with food retailers. This brief represents accumulated insights from researchers working with the Center for Environmental Farming System’s North Carolina Growing Together project, and researchers working with the SNAP-Ed program; the Center for Behavioral Economics and Healthy Food Choice Research (BECR); and the Regional Nutrition Education, and Obesity Prevention Center of Excellence for the Southern Region (RNECE-South). Combined, researchers involved with these projects have conducted food retail interventions for 5 years with over 20 different corporate and family-owned retailers.