User-Centered Design of a Mobile Application to Improve Healthy Food Availability in Under-Resourced Urban Settings

OBJECTIVES: Small independently-owned corner stores located in under-resourced urban settings typically lack affordable, high-quality fresh foods. To address gaps identified in the supply-side procurement and distribution of healthier foods to corner stores, we developed the Baltimore Urban food Distribution (BUD) mobile application (app). The app works to move healthier foods from local suppliers to corner stores via collective purchasing and shared delivery. Here we characterize the usability, acceptability, and functionality of the BUD app based on mixed-methods formative research. METHODS: Formal and informal in-depth interviews were conducted across multiple stages of the development of the app, leading to iterative improvements. Usability testing included app prototype demonstrations and task completion as part of a user-centered design process—with a strong emphasis on target end-users and their needs—among relevant stakeholders (consumers, retailers, suppliers, community- and government-level organizations). An initial pilot of a simplified version of the app was then conducted among one produce supplier and two corner stores in East Baltimore from December 2021 to February 2022. RESULTS: Stakeholders found the BUD app to have high usability, acceptability, and functionality. Interviews revealed that corner store owners would like to see a wide array of products available on the app, and suppliers felt the app could allow them to create a new market for their products. Other stakeholders saw potential for future expansion of the app to other hard-to-reach settings (schools, rural communities). Usability testing informed refinement of app features such as product uploading, delivery and payment options. Our initial pilot demonstrated a need to build rapport, trust, and store owner self-efficacy when first introduced to the app. CONCLUSIONS: Supply-side barriers to healthy eating are often overlooked and there is a major gap in connectivity between local suppliers and small store owners. The BUD app aims to provide a digital solution to address this in an under-resourced urban setting. Future research will entail scale-up of the app, allowing us to explore how BUD can sustainably strengthen the relationships between different actors of the food system and their complex, dynamic food environments. FUNDING SOURCES: NHLBI, NIH, R34HL145368.