What are the position and power of supermarkets in the Australian food system, and the implications for public health? A systematic scoping review

© 2017 World Obesity Federation. Supermarkets have been described as having unprecedented and disproportionate power in the food system. This scoping review synthesized the literature that describes the position and power of supermarkets in the Australian food system, and the implications for public...

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Main Authors: Pulker, Claire, Trapp, G., Scott, Jane, Pollard, Christina
Format: Journal Article
Published: Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Ltd. 2018
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/61700
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author Pulker, Claire
Trapp, G.
Scott, Jane
Pollard, Christina
author_facet Pulker, Claire
Trapp, G.
Scott, Jane
Pollard, Christina
author_sort Pulker, Claire
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description © 2017 World Obesity Federation. Supermarkets have been described as having unprecedented and disproportionate power in the food system. This scoping review synthesized the literature that describes the position and power of supermarkets in the Australian food system, and the implications for public health. A systematic search of peer-reviewed and grey literature identified 68 documents that described supermarket power. Implications for public health were also recorded. Data revealed that supermarkets hold a powerful position in the Australian food system, acting as the primary gatekeepers. Supermarkets have obtained instrumental, structural and discursive power from many sources that overlap and reinforce each other. Few positive public health impacts of supermarket power were identified, providing many opportunities for improvement in the domains of food governance, the food system and public health nutrition. There is very little public health research examining the impact of supermarket power in Australia. More research is needed, and examination of supermarket own brands is of particular importance owing to their pivotal role as a source of power and their potential to improve public health outcomes, such as obesity.
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institution Curtin University Malaysia
institution_category Local University
last_indexed 2025-11-14T10:20:07Z
publishDate 2018
publisher Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-617002019-07-08T07:28:02Z What are the position and power of supermarkets in the Australian food system, and the implications for public health? A systematic scoping review Pulker, Claire Trapp, G. Scott, Jane Pollard, Christina © 2017 World Obesity Federation. Supermarkets have been described as having unprecedented and disproportionate power in the food system. This scoping review synthesized the literature that describes the position and power of supermarkets in the Australian food system, and the implications for public health. A systematic search of peer-reviewed and grey literature identified 68 documents that described supermarket power. Implications for public health were also recorded. Data revealed that supermarkets hold a powerful position in the Australian food system, acting as the primary gatekeepers. Supermarkets have obtained instrumental, structural and discursive power from many sources that overlap and reinforce each other. Few positive public health impacts of supermarket power were identified, providing many opportunities for improvement in the domains of food governance, the food system and public health nutrition. There is very little public health research examining the impact of supermarket power in Australia. More research is needed, and examination of supermarket own brands is of particular importance owing to their pivotal role as a source of power and their potential to improve public health outcomes, such as obesity. 2018 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/61700 10.1111/obr.12635 Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Ltd. restricted
spellingShingle Pulker, Claire
Trapp, G.
Scott, Jane
Pollard, Christina
What are the position and power of supermarkets in the Australian food system, and the implications for public health? A systematic scoping review
title What are the position and power of supermarkets in the Australian food system, and the implications for public health? A systematic scoping review
title_full What are the position and power of supermarkets in the Australian food system, and the implications for public health? A systematic scoping review
title_fullStr What are the position and power of supermarkets in the Australian food system, and the implications for public health? A systematic scoping review
title_full_unstemmed What are the position and power of supermarkets in the Australian food system, and the implications for public health? A systematic scoping review
title_short What are the position and power of supermarkets in the Australian food system, and the implications for public health? A systematic scoping review
title_sort what are the position and power of supermarkets in the australian food system, and the implications for public health? a systematic scoping review
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/61700