Is it appropriate to import existing food retail environment definitions for the Latin American context? A systematic search and expert knowledge

Abstract

Food environment research in Latin American may not be considered incipient anymore. We still have important methodological challenges, including understanding food retail typology. We developed an inventory of types of food stores in LA, using a literature review to identify the terminology used in LA scientific papers and expert knowledge. A list of food store types was constructed, followed by definition and similarities of US-Latin America differences. The taxonomy may be useful to facilitate comparisons, to develop data repositories evaluating availability of store types, to generate empirical data to classify food stores in healthy/unhealthy, and to develop frameworks for the region.