Sixty Percent of Foods Advertised in Grocery Store Flyers are Not In-line with Canada’s Food Guide

Purpose: To evaluate foods advertised in discount and premium grocery flyers for their alignment with Canada’s 2007 Food Guide (CFG) and assess if alignment differed by food category, season, page location, and price. Methods: Weekly flyers (n = 192) were collected from discount and premium grocery chains from each of 4 seasons. Health Canada’s Surveillance Tool was used to assess food items as in-line or not in-line with CFG. Results: Of 35 576 food items, 39.7% were in-line with CFG. There were no differences in proportions of foods not in-line in discount versus premium flyers (60.9% and 60.0%, respectively). Other Foods and Meat & Alternatives were advertised most (28.0% and 26.3%, respectively; P < 0.001). Milk & Alternatives were the least advertised food group (10.3%). Vegetables & Fruit (19.6%), Grains (21.6%), Milk & Alternatives (20.6%), and Meat & Alternatives (20.2%) were promoted least in Fall (P < 0.001). A higher proportion of foods advertised on middle pages were not in-line (61.0%) compared with front (56.6%) and back (58.8%) pages (P < 0.001). Not in-line foods were more expensive ($3.49, IQR = $2.82) than in-line foods ($3.28, IQR = $2.81; P < 0.001). Conclusions: While there was no difference in healthfulness of foods advertised in discount versus premium flyers, grocers advertised more foods not in-line with CFG. Government policies to improve the food environment should consider grocery flyers.

Low-Cost Model for Battlefield Wound and Hemorrhage Training

ABSTRACT Introduction Exsanguination is the leading cause of preventable death on the battlefield and in austere environments. Multiple courses have been developed to save lives by stopping hemorrhage. Training for this requires simulation models; however, many models are expensive, preventing the further expansion of this life-saving training. We present a low-cost model for hemorrhage training and realistic moulage based on simple medical supplies and grocery store meats. Materials and Methods Wound packing training was completed by use of a block of pork shoulder roast with an incision simulating a wound and IV tubing connected to a syringe with fake blood. Hemostasis was obtained with proper wound packing by the student, causing the bleeding to be tamponaded. Wound moulage utilized remaining supplies of pork roast being attached to patient actors or mannequins and adorned with fake blood creating wounds with the appearance and feel of real tissues. Results Tactical Combat Casualty Care (TCCC) training was completed at a small military medical facility with a start-up cost of less than $70 and a single course as cheap as $15. These methods have been utilized to establish other TCCC training centers while keeping costs low. Conclusions We present low-cost models for simulating massive hemorrhage for wound packing with pork roast and realistic moulage. These methods can be utilized for other hemorrhage training courses such as TCCC, Advanced Wilderness Life Support, and Stop the Bleed.

Hunger Effects on Option Quality for Hedonic and Utilitarian Food Products

Multiple studies have examined the extent to which consumers’ hunger levels predict their food choices and preference patterns. These investigations often involve making binary choices between hedonic and utilitarian foods. However, most consumers entering a grocery store are not restricted to solely selecting either hedonic or utilitarian foods. Rather, they typically choose both hedonic and utilitarian food options. Moreover, little is known about the effects of hunger on the quality of these food choices or consumers’ cognitive performance in food contexts. To address these gaps, the current study explored (1) whether experimentally induced hunger (vs. satiation) influenced the option quality of consumers’ chosen food items (i.e., the match between actual choices and stated preferences); (2) whether this potential interplay was contingent on the food category (hedonic vs. utilitarian); and (3) whether hungry (vs. satiated) consumers’ performance differed on cognitively challenging tasks. The results revealed that hunger did not lead to a generalized decrease in consumers’ option quality. However, option quality was inferior for utilitarian—but not hedonic—foods among hungry participants, whereas no such differences were found for satiated participants. Hungry (vs. satiated) consumers also performed significantly worse on cognitively demanding tasks, underscoring the far-reaching consequences of hunger on consumers’ decision-making. Together, the current research offers a novel way of testing whether and how hunger influences the quality of consumers’ chosen food items in both hedonic and utilitarian food categories.

Total Mercury Concentration of Wild Caught Fish Purchased from Grocery Stores: A Potential Public Health Concern

Methylmercury is a highly toxic organic compound that bioaccumulates and biomagnifies in the human body when absorbed by the gastrointestinal tract after ingestion.1 Thus, monitoring methylmercury levels in fish is crucial for protecting public health and preventing dramatic scenarios such as the Minamata disease crisis in Japan. In this study, three different species of wild caught fish – Sockeye Salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) from Alaska, USA; tuna imported from Vietnam; and swordfish (Xiphias gladius) imported from Indonesia – were collected from a Harris Teeter grocery store in Washington D.C. Total mercury concentration was measured by ICP-MS and the analyzed samples’ concentrations were 19.8 ± 2.9 ppb, 2.67 ± 0.01 ppm, and 380 ± 9 ppb for Sockeye Salmon, swordfish, and tuna, respectively.

Total Mercury Concentration of Wild Caught Fish Purchased from Grocery Stores: A Potential Public Health Concern

Methylmercury is a highly toxic organic compound that bioaccumulates and biomagnifies in the human body when absorbed by the gastrointestinal tract after ingestion.1 Thus, monitoring methylmercury levels in fish is crucial for protecting public health and preventing dramatic scenarios such as the Minamata disease crisis in Japan. In this study, three different species of wild caught fish – Sockeye Salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) from Alaska, USA; tuna imported from Vietnam; and swordfish (Xiphias gladius) imported from Indonesia – were collected from a Harris Teeter grocery store in Washington D.C. Total mercury concentration was measured by ICP-MS and the analyzed samples’ concentrations were 19.8 ± 2.9 ppb, 2.67 ± 0.01 ppm, and 380 ± 9 ppb for Sockeye Salmon, swordfish, and tuna, respectively.

Quantifying the Food and Physical Activity Environments in Rural, High Obesity Communities

The built environment contributes to an individual’s health, and rural geographies face unique challenges for healthy eating and active living. The purpose of this descriptive study was to assess the nutrition and physical activity environments in rural communities with high obesity prevalence. One community within each of six high obesity prevalence counties in a rural Midwest state completed the Nutrition Environment Measures Survey for Stores (NEMS-S) and the Rural Active Living Assessment (RALA). Data were collected by trained community members and study staff. All communities had at least one grocery store and five had at least one convenience store. Grocery stores had higher mean total NEMS-S scores than convenience stores (26.6 vs. 6.0, p < 0.001), and higher scores for availability (18.7 vs. 5.3, p < 0.001) and quality (5.4 vs. 0, p < 0.001) of healthful foods (higher scores are preferable). The mean RALA town-wide assessment score across communities was 56.5 + 15.6 out of a possible 100 points. The mean RALA program and policy assessment score was 40.8 + 20.4 out of a possible 100 points. While grocery stores and schools are important for enhancing food and physical environments in rural areas, many opportunities exist for improvements to impact behaviors and address obesity.

Sri Lankan consumers and the market

BackgroundThe supermarket industry in Sri Lanka is set out for an explosive growth in the recent years this is with the western lifestyle of modern Sri Lankans where convenience is a key benefit sought after. The traditional grocery store concept has been evolving in to a “Mega Stores” and the heavy discounter concept which carry all the goods shoppers want. If we look at the drivers for the evolution of modern supply chains, or “Modern Trade” they have been persistent in increase demand for value added consumer products, convenience food, beverage, and frozen confectioneries.ObjectiveThe purpose of this paper is to get a clear idea about Sri Lankan consumers and the market in order to approach new supermarket to the industry.MethodsSurvey questions have been designed after a careful review of related literature. This survey has been chosen because this is the best way to gather and explore about the thoughts, feelings, perceptions and opinions of respondents and also there are other reasons as well such as this is self-administered because of its simplicity, reliability of data and also this reduces the variability in results because of the fixed response questions.ConclusionIn Sri Lankan context the supermarket industry is becoming very popular and also competitive industry. Therefore, there are many aspects need to be smoothly considered before starting a new supermarket and also the market is very competitive and new strategies will be needed in order to survive and to gain the competitive advantage over competitors. Service quality, reliability, accuracy should be high and also more facilities should be provided. In Sri Lankan supermarkets, mainly non-durable products which are required on daily basis takes the first place. In Sri Lanka, there are no many categories of supermarkets on the basis of social class. Therefore, in one supermarket, there should be many varieties which will be useful for any category in social class. The price should be competitive and here many supermarkets have higher prices and a smaller number of promotions and discounts for consumers. Considering all aspects, it is good to commence operations in Sri Lanka and it would be profitable.

Social media marketing, shoppers' store love and loyalty

PurposeThis study investigates the impact of social media marketing activities (SMMA) on shoppers' store love and the impact of store love on store loyalty in grocery retail. Moreover, it explores the mediating and moderating role of store love and social media usage intensity (SMUI).Design/methodology/approachA survey was conducted among grocery shoppers and social media users in Norway. A total of 177 valid responses were collected and analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM).FindingsThe study discovered that SMMA impacts store love, and store love affects store loyalty. Store love serves as a mediator between SMMA and store loyalty. SMUI positively moderates the relationship between SMMA and store love; however, the relationship between store love and store loyalty is not moderated by SMUI.Research limitations/implicationsDespite having limited generalizability from a cross-sectional study, this study provides literary additions to the body of knowledge in grocery retail and enhances the cognitive appraisal theory (CAT) and the attachment theory (AT).Practical implicationsThe findings of this study will help grocery shoppers, store managers and grocery chain marketers to comprehend the role of SMMA in building emotional attachment with a grocery store and help make better decisions.Originality/valueFor the first time, this study incorporated SMUI as a moderator in the relationship between SMMA, store love and store loyalty in grocery retail. The study also proposes a new explanation for the relationship between SMMA and store loyalty by highlighting the mediating role of store love.

Life-Space Constriction in Aging Adults

Community-dwelling aging adults desire to maintain independence and prevent or delay a sequela of declining function and ultimate frailty. Early indicators of potential declines in function and frailty, such as life-space constriction (LSC), are important to identifying early. The purpose of this study was to examine factors associated with LSC and the influence of these factors and LSC on function and frailty. A cross-sectional study using a convenience sample of community dwelling persons 55 and older living in the South was conducted. Results indicated most participants (N = 72) were female (69%; n = 50) and half were White (53.5%; n = 38). LSC explained 34% variance in function (F = 3.805 (8, 59); p = .001) when environmental supports (social network), challenges (driving time it took the participant to get to the nearest full-service grocery store) and individual factors were controlled for. There was a significant difference between Black and White participants with environmental challenges (p = .001) and function (p = .001). Individual factors included challenges (age-related physiological changes, disease burden, and mental health limitations) and buoy (assistive devices), these explained 22% variance in self-reported frailty (F= 3.099 (6, 65); p = .01). Number of assistive devices was the only significant predictor of self-reported frailty.