Concepts and Measures of “Alternative” Retail Food Outlets: Considerations for Facilitating Access to Healthy, Local Food

Abstract

Over the last decade, there has been a notable increase in the number of “alternative” ways of obtaining food in cities and communities. Alongside “mainstream” food stores like supermarkets and grocery stores, new “less conventional” retail outlets are emerging. To capture these food outlets as part of the built community nutrition environment, it is important to expand current concepts and measures to include alternative retail food outlets (ARFO), such as farmers' markets, farm stores, produce stands, and farm linkage outlets in schools. Concepts, measures, and methodologies used to assess retail food stores and nutrition environments are reviewed, followed by a discussion of their relevance and applicability to select forms of ARFOs in communities.

KEYWORDS:

• food system planning
• farmers' markets
• alternative food networks
• food environment
• assessment
• community food security
• policy
• community nutrition
• food distribution
• physical environments