Keeping track of healthy food: monitoring and planning for better nutrition

Brimblecombe J (2008)
Keeping track of healthy food: monitoring and planning for improvements in the national quality of the store food supply in remote communities.
Darwin: Menzies School of Health Research

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This report provides a rationale for key indicators designed to monitor the nutritional quality of food available through remote community stores. It provides a framework for the use of these indicators and makes recommendations for its future development.

The remote community store is considered a priority intervention setting for achieving nutritional goals for Indigenous Australians in terms of food access and availability. The report’s objectives includes the development of a set of performance indicators based on the nutritional composition of foods sold through six community stores across remote Australia; the design of an automated system linked to point of sale scanning software to report on the performance indicators; the development of an operation manual for the reporting system; and the test of a monitoring tool in two remote communities.

Findings are presented for each objectives as well as the overall project aim, that is to develop a monitoring tool based on indicator foods that reflect on the key dietary problems in remote communities. The findings can be used by stakeholders as part of a progressive cycle of planning, action and reassessment for improved nutritional quality of the food supply.

Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet abstract

• Further information:
  •  National NutritionNetworks Conference 2008 Good Tucker – Good Health
    View conference abstract: National  Rural Health Alliance
  • Rural Health conference home page
    View conference website
  • Remote Indigenous Stores and Takeaway Project
    View project outline: Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet