A corner store intervention in a low-income urban community is associated with increased availability and sales of some healthy foods.
OBJECTIVE
While corner store-based nutrition interventions have emerged as a potential strategy to increase healthy food availability in low-income communities, few evaluation studies exist. We present the results of a trial in Baltimore City to increase the availability and sales of healthier food options in local stores.


METHODS
Quasi-experimental study.


METHODS
Corner stores owned by Korean-Americans and supermarkets located in East and West Baltimore.


METHODS
Seven corner stores and two supermarkets in East Baltimore received a 10-month intervention and six corner stores and two supermarkets in West Baltimore served as comparison.


RESULTS
During and post-intervention, stocking of healthy foods and weekly reported sales of some promoted foods increased significantly in intervention stores compared with comparison stores. Also, intervention storeowners showed significantly higher self-efficacy for stocking some healthy foods in comparison to West Baltimore storeowners.


CONCLUSIONS
Findings of the study demonstrated that increases in the stocking and promotion of healthy foods can result in increased sales. Working in small corner stores may be a feasible means of improving the availability of healthy foods and their sales in a low-income urban community.
Song
Hee-Jung
HJ
Center for Human Nutrition, Department of International Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, 615 N. Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD 21205-2179, USA. hsong@jhsph.edu
Gittelsohn
Joel
J
Kim
Miyong
M
Suratkar
Sonali
S
Sharma
Sangita
S
Anliker
Jean
J
D015142:Baltimore; D003132:Commerce / Q000191:economics / Q000592:standards*; D004032:Diet / Q000191:economics / Q000592:standards*; D005523:Food Supply / Q000191:economics / Q000592:standards* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D011203:Poverty; D014505:Urban Population