Consumer demand for food at home and food away from home: Understanding economic linkages during the pandemic

Household food expenditure has shifted away from Food at Home (FAH) and towards Food Away from Home (FAFH). Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, FAFH's share of food expenditure surpassed that of FAH, reaching 55% in 2019. Yet economic research on FAFH and the interaction of FAFH and FAH has been limited. Combining scanner data for meat sales in grocery stores with data for FAFH expenditure, we estimate a model of demand for at-home meat, incorporating FAFH expenditure as a demand shifter. We quantify substitution between FAFH expenditure and FAH meat and quantify the impact of the COVID-19 disruptions to the food service sector on retail prices of FAH meat. © 2023 The Authors. Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Agricultural & Applied Economics Association.

Stocking up and stocking out: Food retail stock-outs, consumer demand, and prices during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020

Monitoring food retail stock-outs or the unplanned unavailability of certain food items for purchase assists policymakers in responding to food supply chain disruptions. This study focuses on identifying food stock-outs using store-level scanner data on US grocery store sales during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. The total median stock-out rates of fixed-weight items increased by approximately 130% after March 15, 2020. Categories such as meat and poultry products, some convenience and frozen foods, baby formula, and carbonated beverages had the highest stock-out rates. The analysis also explores the relationship between stock-out rates, sales increases, and food prices during the pandemic. Published 2023. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.

STRATEGIES FOR ENHANCING RECRUITMENT OF ADULTS FOR RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL AMONG HETEROGENOUS SAMPLE OF CANCER SURVIVORS WITH INSOMNIA AMID THE COVID PANDEMIC

Introduction: Challenges associated with recruiting participants in a longitudinal research study have been recognized yet remain a major barrier for researchers. The current study details strategies used in recruiting a heterogenous sample of cancer survivors with insomnia from multiple clinical sites, referral sources and outreach. Methods: Enrollment goals were 158 participants over 3 years (June 2019 to May 2022). Recruitment strategies included 1) face-to-face (FTF) recruitment at hospital clinics;2) posting recruitment flyers in clinical settings;3) completion of insomnia screening instrument at community clinic sites;4) research registries;5) institutional social media outreach;6) community events;7) PI interview and request for study volunteers in local newspaper;and 8) ongoing engagement and communication with recruited participants. Results: 108 of 158 participants have been recruited and completed baseline surveys;9 participants dropped out. To date, 42 of 49 (85.7%) participants have completed the 12-month study. June 2019 through December 2019 FTF recruitment occurred, where 104 were eligible and 32 (30.76%) were enrolled. Due to changes in study personnel and the COVID pandemic restricting access to in-person recruitment and enrollment, the study pivoted to develop protocols for electronic consent and enrollment using video conferencing. In addition, research databases, institutional social media, community events and local newspaper were utilized, where 76 of 239 (31.79%) interested participants enrolled. The most effective recruitment strategies included on-site FTF recruitment (57.9%) and local newspaper interview (13.88%). The local newspaper interview was the most cost-effective considering personnel costs associated with FTF recruitment. Conclusion: Despite the onset of the COVID pandemic during the recruitment phase, we were able to pivot and employ innovative techniques to meet our targeted enrollment goal for the projected study deadline. FTF recruitment, perceived value by clinic staff in benefitting cancer survivors, and participants' acceptance of video-conferencing were significant contributors. The importance of building and maintaining relationships with providers and nurses in local clinical sites cannot be underestimated.

COVID-19 working paper: the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on food-away-from-home spending. (COVID-19 Working Paper No. AP-100.)

This paper summarizes national changes in the frequency and dollar amount of U.S. consumers' food-away-from-home (FAFH) purchases during the COVID-19 pandemic. The analysis draws on frequently updated proprietary data sources to measure national FAFH trends in average monthly spending and the weekly changes in store transactions. Both spending and transactions at restaurants substantially fell following the onset of the pandemic and have remained below pre-pandemic levels more than 1 year later. Differences in the decline in spending and transactions across restaurant types and mealtimes are notable. Although restaurant restrictions are loosening across the country in the first half of 2021, visits and spending have been slow to recover to their pre-pandemic levels.