Outlets source of foods in Montevideo: implications for retail food environment research in emerging countries

Abstract

Objective: To identify outlets source of foods in Montevideo, the capital city of Uruguay. Design: Cross-sectional field survey of food outlets selling foods and beverages. Setting: 106 census tracts differing in geographical location and socio-economic characteristics. Participants: Outlets selling foods and beverages within the census tracts. Main Outcome Measure: Number, density, and distribution of food outlets selling different food groups, regarded as healthy and unhealthy by the Uruguayan dietary guideline. Analysis: Inferential statistics to compare the measures in census tracts of different socio-economic status. Results: A total of 1,217 food outlets were identified, corresponding to a wide range of different types. Small stores had a highly relevant contribution to the availability of unprocessed foods, whereas ultra-processed products were ubiquitous. The proportion and density of food outlets selling fruits and vegetables and fresh meat was higher in low socio-economic status than in medium/high socio-economic tracts. The distribution of outlets selling different food groups significantly differed across census tracts. Conclusions and Implications: Results highlight the importance of capturing the local food sources that shape the availability of healthy and unhealthy foods. Context-specific definitions of food deserts and food swamps acknowledging the complexity of the retail food environment are needed.