The role of convenience stores in healthy food environments: The case of Barcelona (Spain)

The characterization of local food environments is of great importance due to its connection with the health of citizens. Nevertheless, little is known about the in-store availability, quality, and price of healthy items in convenience stores, a food store quickly spreading in urban settings around the globe. To fill this gap, this study explores their contribution to healthy food environments in Barcelona (Spain). We compiled a representative food basket with healthy options and compared it with 170 observations in convenience stores to collect data on the in-store availability, quality, and price. About 66 % sold fruit and vegetables. The quality of fruit and vegetables sold was good-medium. Compared to regular supermarkets, the basket at a convenience store was 18 % more expensive. There were not differences in the availability and quality of products between neighbourhoods of different income levels. We conclude that convenience stores contribute equally as supermarkets in terms of availability and quality to the healthy local food environments. More research is needed to effectively evaluate the implications of affordability in low-income neighbourhoods. We highlight the importance of considering convenience stores in the healthy food access mapping in urban settings worldwide, and on the global debate on sustainable food environments.

Automated summary

This study explores the contribution of convenience stores in Barcelona to healthy food environments and finds that they are as equally available and of good-medium quality as supermarkets in terms of fruits and vegetables. However, convenience stores are 18% more expensive than supermarkets. Therefore, further research is needed to evaluate the implications of affordability in low-income neighborhoods.