Implementing the FoodAPS-2 study

Challenge

Limited national data are available on household food purchasing decisions. Collecting this information will help fill a critical data gap and support research that informs policymaking on key national priorities, including hunger, nutrition assistance policy, health, and obesity.

To better understand what foods Americans’ acquire and have access to, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) Economic Research Service (ERS) is sponsoring the FoodAPS study. The first study was conducted in 2012. USDA is now preparing to launch FoodAPS-2 in 2021. Capturing all the food a household acquires over a 7-day period is complex and requires extensive infrastructure to execute successfully.

USDA tapped Westat to test an alternate data collection method that used web-based tools in 2016 and given the positive findings, has subsequently awarded Westat the FoodAPS-2 contract.

Solution

FoodAPS-2 will use web-based technology to gather the data. Westat is working on further automating the data entry to reduce respondent burden and increase data quality.
Participants will upload their receipts and have the option to enter the details on their food items via an app on their smartphone or a website on their computer with the use of an attached barcode scanner.
Multiple databases support this system allowing scanned food items to be recognized and registered in real time.
Westat will conduct a pretest of 430 households to test enhancements to the electronic tools. The main study will include 5,000 households.

The Results

FoodAPS data allows researchers to investigate the relationship between consumer choices, food prices, income, community environment, and policy factors.

What's the best way to collect data on food a household acquires?