Engaging local grocery stores in promoting heart-healthy food choices

Heart health is shaped by decisions repeated at kitchen tables, workplaces and local shops every week. In Australia, grocery stores are an important part of the food environment, and engaging them can turn general advice about cardiovascular disease into affordable, visible choices. A partnership between retailers, community health teams and local organisations can support prevention while also helping people already managing diabetes, obesity or heart-related conditions.

The 2023 APEC Conference on Promoting Community-based Non-Communicable Diseases Integrated Care Model placed community-based prevention and management at the centre of the discussion. Its focus on diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular conditions and ageing populations shows why action must reach beyond clinics. Daily settings such as supermarkets can connect health information with the products, prices and routines that shape household decisions.

Australian shoppers navigate a supermarket landscape shaped by Coles, Woolworths, ALDI and independent grocers such as IGA, alongside strong private-label ranges. Many households plan a weekly shop and respond to specials, multibuy offers and reduced-price produce. Display, price and familiarity therefore influence heart-healthy eating as much as nutrition information does.

Australian packs display energy in kilojoules and usually carry a Health Star Rating, giving shoppers useful signals but no guarantee that a product fits a heart-healthy diet. Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane also contain culturally diverse communities with different cuisines, household budgets and preferred foods. Local projects should reflect those differences instead of treating one shopping list as representative of the country.

Why grocery stores can influence heart health

Most food purchases are made without a dietitian standing beside the shopper. Store managers decide which products receive prominent space, which recipes appear in leaflets and which offers make a healthier option feel routine. These choices shape what people notice and buy, especially when they are feeding a family or managing a condition.

Heart-healthy promotion should lead with foods people can add to familiar meals: vegetables, fruit, legumes, wholegrains, nuts, seeds and fish, plus unsaturated oils. Shelf and signage messages can also explain how lower-sodium, lower saturated-fat and lower added-sugar choices fit into everyday eating. The aim is steady substitution and sustained access, not a short burst of sales.

Retailers can reduce friction by keeping nutritious staples visible, avoiding repeated stockouts and making smaller pack sizes available where households need them. For older shoppers, clear signs, reachable shelves and staff who can help carry shopping matter as much as recipes. A store becomes a community prevention setting when merchandising, affordability and respectful service work together.

Building a partnership people can use

A workable partnership begins with the store manager and buying teams, not a campaign designed elsewhere. Community organisations can contribute dietetic expertise, local insight and trusted messengers; councils and health services can connect food initiatives with broader prevention work; shoppers can help test whether labels and offers are understandable. Early meetings should agree on a shared goal, budget, staff time and measures of success.

The programme of discussion in the conference agenda offers a useful structure for such a meeting, connecting community needs with cross-sector action. A local working group can use it to assign roles, compare priorities and record decisions. The downloadable program book and presentation slides can then become a shared briefing rather than background material.

Start with one store, one neighbourhood and one measurable offer. A pilot might combine a seasonal produce display, a modest price incentive on pulses or wholegrains, and a recipe card beside a familiar product. Staff should receive a short briefing explaining the goal, the products involved and how to answer common questions. Record the starting position before launch so participants can judge what changes.

Turning good intentions into easy choices

Healthy defaults are built through the whole shopping journey. Produce and other useful staples can occupy visible spaces, while signs beside familiar products explain their benefits in plain language. In a busy Coles or Woolworths, a clear shelf tag may be read quickly; at an independent IGA, a handwritten card made with local staff may build trust. Messages should say what to choose and how to use it, not judge previous purchases.

Price determines whether a healthier option becomes a realistic purchase, particularly for pensioners on fixed incomes. Stores can test bundles of seasonal produce, no-added-salt tinned fish, dried legumes or wholegrains, while keeping discounts visible through the weekly-shop cycle. Reformulated products with less sodium or saturated fat can sit beside standard options, and private-label ranges can help maintain availability without relying entirely on promotional budgets.

Nutrition information supports these changes, but shoppers need interpretation. Energy is listed in kilojoules, and the Health Star Rating can make comparisons faster, yet neither tells someone whether a product is high in saturated fat or how it fits a meal. Short shelf guidance on fibre, sodium and added sugar, linked to practical recipes, can close that gap. Digital QR codes can extend the message, although every key detail should also appear in print.

Campaigns should reflect the cuisines people already cook. A series built around legumes and grains in Middle Eastern, South Asian or East Asian meals can reach families without asking them to abandon familiar food. Cooking demonstrations, recipes developed with local community groups and culturally tailored produce bundles can make the message useful across Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and regional towns. Ingredients and serving advice should be adapted with dietitian input.

Bringing generations together

Older Australians are a major priority because cardiovascular risk rises with age and many live alone or rely on family for shopping. A partnership can support lower-sodium staples, foods that are easy to chew and preparation advice that respects mobility, cooking confidence and cultural preferences. It can also connect shoppers with trusted local health information when a product label or diagnosis leaves them unsure where to seek help.

A related conference resource explores intergenerational prevention programs and the role families can play in non-communicable disease prevention. Grandparents, parents and children can be invited to design recipes, taste sessions and walking groups around food habits they share. Family-based activities can make heart-health messages social, while still allowing each age group to contribute according to its interests and abilities.

Intergenerational work should include people who are less visible in standard campaigns, such as residents in regional and remote areas, people with disability and households facing financial hardship. Regional stores may face longer supply chains and limited storage, so shelf-stable foods and realistic order quantities can be more useful than city-based displays. Transport vouchers, home-delivery partnerships or community pickup points can help where distance or mobility restricts access.

Stores can also act as a referral point without diagnosing or giving medical advice. Trained staff can direct customers to accredited dietitians, heart-health services, diabetes programs and local social supports. A simple referral card, agreed wording and a direct contact can prevent vague advice. This connection to integrated care is especially valuable when a customer asks whether a food suits a prescribed diet.

Measuring what changes

Measurement protects the partnership from becoming a publicity exercise. Begin with baseline sales of selected products, customer understanding of key messages and the number of staff trained. During the test, track offer redemption, changes in basket composition and customer feedback. Health outcomes will take longer to show, so the partnership should also record referrals, repeat visits and how partners are working together.

Data collection should be proportionate. Use aggregated till information where possible, obtain consent for interviews, and avoid recording identifiable health details in store systems. Check whether benefits reach pensioners, families and shoppers from different cultural backgrounds rather than only those already buying premium products. If an intervention raises prices or creates stock conflicts, adjust it before scale-up.

Regular reviews can compare stores, neighbourhoods or campaign periods, while allowing local teams to explain what the numbers mean. A retailer may learn that shelf placement matters more than a discount, while a community organisation may find that recipe cards attract more attention than formal leaflets. Share practical findings through conference materials and other professional channels so successful methods can be adapted without repeating weak ideas.

Recognise the people who make the work visible: produce teams, checkout staff, community health workers, dietitians and shoppers who offer feedback. Staff need time, scripts and a clear escalation process; otherwise good messages will not survive a busy shift. Recognition should include store teams and community partners equally, since trust and sustained commitment are what turn a short pilot into a durable local service.

Moving from discussion to neighbourhood action

The value of the APEC conference approach is its attention to community-based, integrated care. Grocery partnerships add another layer: they influence the environment in which prevention choices are made and connect commercial action with clinical and community expertise. The strongest local projects will be modest enough to test, specific enough to measure and inclusive enough for different households to recognise themselves in the programme.

Organisers can use the agenda, program book and presentation resources available through the official conference site to convene partners, while local stores can nominate a manager and community health teams can nominate a coordinator. Begin with one offer, one staff briefing and one feedback method. Publish what was tried, what changed and what remains uncertain so future projects can build on transparent evidence.

Choose one neighbourhood this quarter, approach one local grocery store, and propose a six-week heart-health pilot with a produce display, a modest price incentive and a staff-supported recipe card. Record baseline sales and customer feedback, invite an older resident and a culturally diverse family to co-design the message, and connect participants to local heart-health and diabetes services. Share the results with the APEC conference community and use them to shape the next, better partnership.