Availability and access to food in supermarkets before and during the Covid-19 pandemic in a mid-size city

Autores

  • Priscila Moreira de Lima Pereira Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora
  • Pollyana Ferreira Pereira Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora
  • Mariana Lamha Castellões Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora
  • Ramon Simonis Pequeno Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora
  • Mário Círio Nogueira Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora
  • Ana Paula Carlos Cândido Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora

Palavras-chave:

Food and Nutrition Security, Food Production, Food supply, Food. Infections

Resumo

Objective

To investigate the availability and price of fresh and ultra-processed foods in supermarkets before and during the Covid-19 pandemic in a mid-size city in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais.

Methods
Ecological and longitudinal study. A proportionate stratified random sampling method was applied to supermarkets in the municipality. To assess the availability, variety, and price of fresh and ultra-processed foods, we applied the Estudo do Ambiente Obesogênico em São Paulo (ESAO, Obesogenic Environment Study in São Paulo, Brazil) Food Store Observation Tool questionnaire and calculated the Healthy Food Store Index. The audits took place from December 2019 to January 2020, and we returned to the establishments in September 2020. Descriptive analyzes, McNemar tests, paired Student’s T or Wilcoxon tests were performed using the SPSS software, version 20.0, with a 5% significance level.
Results
Ten supermarkets were evaluated. The prices of oranges (p=0.012), bananas (p=0.043), apples (p=0.004), and onions (p=0.004) were significantly increased during the time frame. Sugar-free soft drinks (p=0.044), powdered drinks (p=0.032), and corn snacks (p=0.015) showed a greater variety of brands and flavors during the pandemic. The Healthy Food Store Index score was 9.50±0.85 before the pandemic and 9.00±1.15 during it.
Conclusion
The prices of some fruits and vegetables increased, and supermarkets sold a greater variety of ultra-processed foods. Such findings highlight the importance of assessing the consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic on the food environment.

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Publicado

08-04-2022

Como Citar

Moreira de Lima Pereira, P. ., Ferreira Pereira, P., Lamha Castellões, M., Simonis Pequeno, R., Círio Nogueira, M., & Carlos Cândido, A. P. (2022). Availability and access to food in supermarkets before and during the Covid-19 pandemic in a mid-size city. Revista De Nutrição, 34, 1–11. Recuperado de https://periodicos.puc-campinas.edu.br/nutricao/article/view/5761

Edição

Seção

THEMATIC SECTION HUNGER, FOOD AND NUTRITION AND COVID-19