These days, the marketing ploys of food manufacturers often get the blame for rises in child weight gain, and the wellness problems that come with it. However, research led by Nancy Childs, Ph.D., professor of food marketing at Saint Joseph’s University, suggests that the in-store marketing activities of food retailers, especially those that directly target children, should be given more attention.
There are already various outreach and legislative efforts to address the problem of the rising rates of childhood obesity. However, according to Childs, food retailers are being overlooked as a potential source for addressing this critical issue which affects children around the world, as well as in the UK. ‘Retailers are mostly off the radar screen on this issue, yet they have enormous potential to assist shoppers with healthier selections, especially busy mums,’ she says.
Childs shared her research, titled In-store Marketing to Children: U.S. Food Retailer Practices Abating Childhood Obesity, at a European conference on marketing to children, and it was published by Revista Portuguesa De Marketing (Portuguese Journal of Marketing). For the study, Childs examined 30 leading U.S. and U.K. food retail chains to identify key marketing tactics and activities used to target childhood obesity. 11 of these practices involved in-store marketing, and each practice was classified within one of three categories: product selection, merchandizing and promotion, and nutrition education.
The results were that, perhaps surprisingly, the U.S. retailers were more likely to implement marketing strategies that emphasized nutrition education and physical activity. Furthermore, retailers expressed an interest in healthy product sampling for kids as it was an opportunity for to build brands and an in-store environment geared toward healthier choices for kids. Childs urges that utilising in-store merchandising ‘is a great opportunity to connect with an important and valuable shopper group through social media and apps, as well as the methods explored in this study.’
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