Organizational Food Environments: Advancing Their Conceptual Model

Castro, Inês Rugani Ribeiro de; Canella, Daniela Silva

doi:10.3390/foods11070993

Cited by 13 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 28 publications

(43 reference statements)

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“…In addition, other factors of interest about the organizational environment such as food policies, spaces and time made available to the community that attends the campus to have their meals, water supply, informal market, virtual context, among others [4,37] were not evaluated in this study.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Potential for healthy eating in a Brazilian public university food environment

et al. 2023

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Objective To identify the food environment healthy eating potential in the authorized food services on the campus of a Brazilian university. Methods This is an observational study carried out between March and April 2014 on a campus of a public university in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The elements of the food environment were evaluated using an audit instrument, containing 86 questions: availability (amount of food services and types of food offered), convenience (days and hours of operation), incentives and barriers to healthy eating (nutrition information, payment strategies and food advertisements). Preparations based on whole grains and fresh or minimally processed products were considered healthy foods; and, preparations with high caloric density, sugar-sweetened beverages, sweets, desserts, cookies, and savory snacks were considered unhealthy food. The questionnaire allowed us to calculate a score for each service, which could range from 0 to 36 points, and indicates the potential for promoting healthy eating in the establishment, with higher scores indicating a greater presence of elements that contribute to healthy eating. The different types of food service facilities were compared based on the scores (p<0.05 for statistical significance). Results Among the establishments evaluated, 24% were snack bars/cafeterias, 26%, restaurants, and 50% offered mixed services. Healthy food items were scarcely available in the establishments (fruits: 24%; vegetables: 20%; brown rice: 15%); while added-sugar beverages (98%), sweets and treats (76%) were widely offered. There was a higher frequency of advertising encouraging consumption of unhealthy items than that aimed at healthy foods (44% vs 30%). In general, the score was 13,2 points (SD=3.3) and the mean score for snack bars/cafeterias (9.3 points) was lower (p<0,05) than that of restaurants and mixed establishments (14,4 points). Conclusion On the campus assessed, the food environment had limited potential for healthy eating, since elements that did not favor healthy food choices were more frequent.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Potential for healthy eating in a Brazilian public university food environment

et al. 2023

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“…The authors recorded data on the supply of homemade products offered at the UPV/EHU; however, the offer of these products at OsloMet could not be studied due to the campuses' closure due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We plan to assess the complete offer in the future to make broader conclusions, and to incorporate other elements of the conceptual model proposed by de Castro and Canella (2022), as well as other healthiness indicators (Ferreira et al, 2021), for a better understanding of these organizational FE.…”

Section: Nova System Amentioning

confidence: 99%

Availability and properties of commercially produced food products offered in European public universities: A North–South comparison

Martinez‐Perez,

Torheim,

Arroyo‐Izaga

2024

Journal of Food Science

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To date, there are no studies that have compared university food environments (FEs) with different sociocultural contexts. Therefore, we analyzed differences in the availability and properties of commercially produced foods, in a northern and a southern European university (located in Norway and Spain, respectively). A cross‐sectional observational study was conducted at OsloMet—Oslo Metropolitan University and at the University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU. The nutritional quality of food products was estimated through the following nutrient profiling models (NPMs): those proposed by the Spanish Agency for Consumer Affairs, Food Safety and Nutrition (AECOSAN), the UK nutrient profiling model (UK NPM), the Norwegian Food and Drink Industry Professional Practices Committee (Matbransjens Fagligle Utvalg [MFU]), and a combination of them. In addition, food items were classified using the NOVA system. A total of 251 and 1051 products were identified at OsloMet and the UPV/EHU, respectively. The percentage categorized as low nutritional quality (LNQ) was higher at the UPV/EHU (almost 54.5% of the total products) compared with at OsloMet (almost 40%) (p < 0.001). Most of the products were categorized as ultra‐processed, and there were no differences in the percentage of ultra‐processed foods between the two universities (OsloMet 86.1%, UPV/EHU 83.3%, p > 0.05). A higher proportion of LNQ products was found at the UPV/EHU than at OsloMet, probably due to the government policies and actions for creating healthy FEs. Consequently, there is a need to develop interventions to improve the FE at the UPV/EHU, adapted to its sociocultural context.Practical ApplicationThis study reveals north–south differences in terms of the availability of low nutritional quality food products. In particular, a higher proportion of this type of product was found at the University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU than at OsloMet—Oslo Metropolitan University. Our exploratory hypothesis is that this phenomenon is a consequence of the Nordic government policies that have great potential to create healthy FEs.

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“…However, the organisational food environment is still little explored and in a limited manner. [5][6][7] Research on food environments continues to grow but the conceptual model published in 2022 argues that more research is needed specifically to assess the organisational food environment and that should go beyond the availability of food and beverages in spaces, 8 which is the most frequently assessed element using instruments developed for the consumer food environment. 6 7 Since the assessment of organisational food environments can contribute to the development of more effective interventions for the promotion of adequate and healthy eating in this setting, adequate instruments and indicators are needed.…”

Section: Strengths and Limitations Of This Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Two reviewers will extract data independently, using a standardised form, considering (1) reference, including the year of publication; (2) country; (3) sample; (4) study objectives; (5) study design; (6) setting (evaluated the organisational food environment in universities, hospitals/healthcare units or workplaces); (7) components of the food environment and eating spaces assessed; (8) instruments, number of items and methodologies employed to measure the food environment; (9) measured dimensions of eating spaces (availability, accessibility, affordability, quality, food and nutrition information, and promotion of foods, beverages and culinary preparations and the availability, acceptability, convenience, ambiance and infrastructure of the eating space); (10) limitations and gaps pointed out by the authors; (11) reported validity and reliability of measures; and (12) the existence of summary measures or healthiness indicators. Disagreements arising from the literature review will also be resolved by consensus.…”

Section: Data Extraction and Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, the organisational food environment is still little explored and in a limited manner. 5–7 Research on food environments continues to grow but the conceptual model published in 2022 argues that more research is needed specifically to assess the organisational food environment and that should go beyond the availability of food and beverages in spaces, 8 which is the most frequently assessed element using instruments developed for the consumer food environment. 6 7 …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Instruments and indicators for assessing organisational food environments: a scoping review protocol

Azevedo,

Curioni,

Bandoni

et al. 2024

BMJ Open

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IntroductionMany studies have explored the food environment to characterise it and understand its role in food practices. Assessment of the organisational food environment can contribute to the development of more effective interventions to promote adequate and healthy eating. However, few instruments and indicators have been developed and validated for assessing this type of setting. The systematisation of those can be useful to support the planning of future assessments and the development of wide-ranging instruments. This study aims to conduct a scoping review to systematise evidence on instruments and indicators for assessing organisational food environments.Methods and analysisThis scoping review was planned according to the methodological framework for scoping reviews proposed by Arksey and O’Malley and subsequently enhanced by Levacet al. For the report of the review, the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses—Extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) checklist and guidelines will be used. The search will be conducted using PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, PsycINFO, Scopus and Google Scholar databases. The studies to be included were required to have been published in peer-reviewed journals since January 2005. No geographical, population or language restrictions will be applied given the desired breadth of the review. Two researchers will select the articles and extract the data independently. The conceptual model proposed by Castro and Canella will guide the data extraction and analysis. The results will be presented with narrative synthesis for the extracted data accompanying the tabulated and charted results.Ethics and disseminationThis study is based on the analysis of published scientific literature and did not involve patients, medical research, or any type of personal information; therefore, no ethical approval was obtained for this study. The results of this scoping review will be submitted for publication in an international peer-reviewed journal, preferably open access.

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Organizational Food Environments: Advancing Their Conceptual Model

Cited by 13 publications

References 28 publications

Potential for healthy eating in a Brazilian public university food environment

Potential for healthy eating in a Brazilian public university food environment

Availability and properties of commercially produced food products offered in European public universities: A North–South comparison

Instruments and indicators for assessing organisational food environments: a scoping review protocol

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