Food HabitsFoodImageNCT03309306
Evaluating Household Food Behavior With a Smartphone App
A study testing Natural Environment/Stress Management and Natural Environment/Reduce Food Waste in people with Food Habits, run by Pennington Biomedical Research Center at 1 site in United States.
Trial summary
The purpose of this study is to test the use of a smartphone app as a way to measure food waste. Investigators propose to improve the accuracy and convenience of household food waste measurement so that consumer food waste program evaluations yield more power, less bias, less measurement error, and greater… Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 18 to 65 yearsHealthy volunteers can take part
- Conditions the study is for
- Food Habits
- What is being tested?
- Natural Environment/Stress Management and Natural Environment/Reduce Food Waste
- Type of treatment
- Lifestyle or therapy programme
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 44 participants
- Where
- 1 siteUnited States
- Study dates
- 26 Apr 2018to 31 Mar 2020
- Phase
- Interventional
- Are there results?
- Yes, posted in the registrySummary in the doctors' view
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages 18 to 65 years
- All sexes
- Healthy volunteers accepted
- Adult, Older adult
Who may be able to join
- age 18-65 years
- body mass index 18.5 - 50 kg/m2, based on self-reported height and weight
- Shops for groceries
- Conducts some of the food shopping and food preparation for their household
- Be willing to do food shopping for the study (if necessary)
- Have an iPhone and an operable Apple ID, password, and email address and is willing to use these to collect data during the study, acknowledging that data usage, and associated charges, are a result of study participation
- Be willing to complete all study procedures corresponding to their randomization group
Who cannot join
- In addition to those who do not meet inclusion criteria, subjects who meet any of the following criteria will be excluded from enrollment:
- Persons who are severely immune compromised
- Persons who are pregnant, as assessed by self-report
- Pennington employee
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country.
United States1 site
Pennington Biomedical Research Center
Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70808
About this study
The purpose of this study is to test the use of a smartphone app as a way to measure food waste.
Investigators propose to improve the accuracy and convenience of household food waste measurement so that consumer food waste program evaluations yield more power, less bias, less measurement error, and greater representation of targeted populations.
Read the detailed description
Investigators will improve measurement via the development of the FoodImage smartphone app, a technology leveraging the investigators' expertise in creating and deploying apps to measure food intake and deliver nutritional interventions in free-living household conditions. Investigators will validate the app against weighed waste in a controlled laboratory setting.
The study will yield an app ready for future study deployment while analyses of the data will inform rapidly evolving policy discussions concerning optimal approaches to reduce food waste. These outcomes align with program priorities to understand the economics of food waste and to use behavioral economics to address consumption behavior.
Specific objectives include:
- Development of FoodImage, a smartphone app that measures household food waste and food-waste-related behaviors,
- Assess differences in the accuracy and time burden of measurements taken with the FoodImage app versus two current household food waste measurement approaches (a pen-and-paper diary, and a pen-and-paper diary with a scale).
- Use the FoodImage app in a pilot randomized controlled trial designed to evaluate the effectiveness of reducing household food waste through behavioral nudges in the form of personalized feedback about food waste levels and household-specific reduction goals.
- Conditions
- Food Habits
- Being tested
- Natural Environment/Stress Management, Natural Environment/Reduce Food Waste
- Medical subject headings
- Feeding Behavior
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
Natural Environment/Stress ManagementOther
Participants will use the FoodImage app to capture data on food purchases, food waste that occurs during food preparation, food waste that is present after eating, and food waste from food purges in free-living conditions. Participants will capture baseline data for 4-7 days. After a 1-week break, participants will use the app to record food waste for approximately 4-7 days over the subsequent week. They will also receive information on stress management
Natural Environment/Reduce Food WasteBehavioural
Participants will use the FoodImage app to capture data on food purchases, food waste that occurs during food preparation, food waste that is present after eating, and food waste from food purges in free-living conditions. Participants will use the app to record food waste for approximately 4-7 days over the subsequent week. They will also be provided with the following:
- Feedback on the amount of food waste their household created during the first week,
- A goal to reduce the next week's food waste by 20% or more, and
- Tips on how to reduce household food waste adapted from current consumer campaigns
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Phase 1: Lab Testing (Visit 1, Day 0) | No intervention | In a laboratory kitchen, participants will use the following 3 methods to record and measure food waste during simulated shopping trip and kitchen clean-outs: the FoodImage App, Pen-and-paper Records, and Pen-and-paper records with a scale. Measurements will be collected by participants with all three methods, while lab personnel directly weigh foods to provide the criterion value. |
| Phase 2: RCT Stress Management | Active comparator | Participants will use the FoodImage app to capture data on food purchases, food waste that occurs during food preparation, food waste that is present after eating, and food waste from food purges in free-living conditions. Participants will capture baseline data for 4-7 days. After a 1-week break, participants will use the app to record food waste for approximately 4-7 days over the subsequent week. They will also receive information on stress management Receives: Other: Natural Environment/Stress Management |
| Phase 2: RCT Food Waste Reduction | Experimental | Phase 2 will occur in participants' natural environment (free-living conditions). Participants will use the FoodImage app to capture data on food purchases, food waste that occurs during food preparation, food waste that is present after eating, and food waste from food purges. Participants will use the app to record food waste for approximately 4-7 days over the subsequent week. They will also be provided with the following:
1. Feedback on the amount of food waste their household created during the first week,
2. A goal to reduce the next week's food waste by 20% or more, and
3. Tips on how to reduce household food waste adapted from current consumer campaigns Receives: Behavioral: Natural Environment/Reduce Food Waste |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Phase 1: Food Waste Error
Participant estimations of food waste using the following three experimental methods as compared to the criterion value of weighed waste collected by study staff: 1) the FoodImage App (FoodImage app estimates minus the criterion value of lab personnel measured weighed food waste), 2) pen and paper diary with visual estimation of food amounts (pen and paper estimates minus the criterion value), and 3) pen and paper diary with a scale (pen and paper dairy accompanied by a scale minus directly weighed foods by lab personnel). All food values are in grams. The error values noted here represent less accurate estimates the further away they are from zero, either in the positive or negative direction. There are no min and max values to error measures.
Measured: Visit 1
Secondary outcomes (1)
Phase 2: Weight of All Household Waste
Difference in change in total weight of all sources of household food waste.
Measured: Baseline to Day 14
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted13 Oct 2017
- Study start26 Apr 2018
- Primary completion7 Sep 2018
- Study completion31 Mar 2020
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Posted resultsParticipant flow, outcome measures and adverse events reported by the sponsor.
- Publications (1)Papers the sponsor has linked to this study.
- Other trials for Food HabitsStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase N/A
- Primary purpose
- Other
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Model description
- A subset of subjects will complete Phase I, which is the lab-based portion of the study, prior to the RCT.
- Masking
- Double blind
- Who is masked
- Investigator, Outcomes assessor
- Enrolment
- 44 participants (actual)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- Pennington Biomedical Research Center
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Collaborators
- Ohio State University
- Responsible party
- Principal investigator, Corby K. Martin, Pennington Biomedical Research Center
- Investigators
- Corby K Martin, Ph.D., Principal investigator, Pennington Biomedical Research Center
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT03309306
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- PBRC 2017-042
- Acronym
- FoodImage
- Status last verified
- Dec 2024
- First submitted
- 3 Oct 2017
- Last updated
- 24 Jan 2025
- Results posted
- Yes, on ClinicalTrials.gov
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- No
Publications
Roe BE, Qi D, Beyl RA, Neubig KE, Martin CK, Apolzan JW. The Validity, Time Burden, and User Satisfaction of the FoodImage Smartphone App for Food Waste Measurement Versus Diaries: A Randomized Crossover Trial. Resour Conserv Recycl. 2020 Sep;160:104858. doi: 10.1016/j.resconrec.2020.104858. Epub 2020 May 21.
PubMed 32773964
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 24 Jan 2025. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- Evaluating Household Food Behavior With a Smartphone App
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT03309306
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- FoodImage / PBRC 2017-042
- Conditions
- Food Habits
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Completed
- Enrolment
- 44 participants (actual)
- Lead sponsor
- Pennington Biomedical Research CenterUniversity, hospital or other
- Collaborators
- Ohio State University
- Study start
- 26 Apr 2018 (actual)
- Primary completion
- 7 Sep 2018 (actual)
- Study completion
- 31 Mar 2020 (actual)
- First posted
- 13 Oct 2017 (actual)
- Results
- Posted 24 Jan 2025
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
The purpose of this study is to test the use of a smartphone app as a way to measure food waste.
Investigators propose to improve the accuracy and convenience of household food waste measurement so that consumer food waste program evaluations yield more power, less bias, less measurement error, and greater representation of targeted populations.
Detailed description
Investigators will improve measurement via the development of the FoodImage smartphone app, a technology leveraging the investigators' expertise in creating and deploying apps to measure food intake and deliver nutritional interventions in free-living household conditions. Investigators will validate the app against weighed waste in a controlled laboratory setting.
The study will yield an app ready for future study deployment while analyses of the data will inform rapidly evolving policy discussions concerning optimal approaches to reduce food waste. These outcomes align with program priorities to understand the economics of food waste and to use behavioral economics to address consumption behavior.
Specific objectives include:
- Development of FoodImage, a smartphone app that measures household food waste and food-waste-related behaviors,
- Assess differences in the accuracy and time burden of measurements taken with the FoodImage app versus two current household food waste measurement approaches (a pen-and-paper diary, and a pen-and-paper diary with a scale).
- Use the FoodImage app in a pilot randomized controlled trial designed to evaluate the effectiveness of reducing household food waste through behavioral nudges in the form of personalized feedback about food waste levels and household-specific reduction goals.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Other
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- Double blind (investigator, outcomes assessor)
- Number of arms
- 3
- Model description
- A subset of subjects will complete Phase I, which is the lab-based portion of the study, prior to the RCT.
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Phase 1: Lab Testing (Visit 1, Day 0) | No intervention | –In a laboratory kitchen, participants will use the following 3 methods to record and measure food waste during simulated shopping trip and kitchen clean-outs: the FoodImage App, Pen-and-paper Records, and Pen-and-paper records with a scale. Measurements will be collected by participants with all three methods, while lab personnel directly weigh foods to provide the criterion value. |
| Phase 2: RCT Stress Management | Active comparator | Other: Natural Environment/Stress ManagementParticipants will use the FoodImage app to capture data on food purchases, food waste that occurs during food preparation, food waste that is present after eating, and food waste from food purges in free-living conditions. Participants will capture baseline data for 4-7 days. After a 1-week break, participants will use the app to record food waste for approximately 4-7 days over the subsequent week. They will also receive information on stress management |
| Phase 2: RCT Food Waste Reduction | Experimental | Behavioral: Natural Environment/Reduce Food WastePhase 2 will occur in participants' natural environment (free-living conditions). Participants will use the FoodImage app to capture data on food purchases, food waste that occurs during food preparation, food waste that is present after eating, and food waste from food purges. Participants will use the app to record food waste for approximately 4-7 days over the subsequent week. They will also be provided with the following: 1. Feedback on the amount of food waste their household created during the first week, 2. A goal to reduce the next week's food waste by 20% or more, and 3. Tips on how to reduce household food waste adapted from current consumer campaigns |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 18 to 65 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Accepted
- Age groups
- Adult, Older adult
Key inclusion criteria (7 listed)
- age 18-65 years
- body mass index 18.5 - 50 kg/m2, based on self-reported height and weight
- Shops for groceries
- Conducts some of the food shopping and food preparation for their household
- Be willing to do food shopping for the study (if necessary)
Key exclusion criteria (4 listed)
- In addition to those who do not meet inclusion criteria, subjects who meet any of the following criteria will be excluded from enrollment:
- Persons who are severely immune compromised
- Persons who are pregnant, as assessed by self-report
- Pennington employee
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| Natural Environment/Stress ManagementParticipants will use the FoodImage app to capture data on food purchases, food waste that occurs during food preparation, food waste that is present after eating, and food waste from food purges in free-living conditions. Participants will capture baseline data for 4-7 days. After a 1-week break, participants will use the app to record food waste for approximately 4-7 days over the subsequent week. They will also receive information on stress management | Other | Phase 2: RCT Stress Management |
| Natural Environment/Reduce Food WasteParticipants will use the FoodImage app to capture data on food purchases, food waste that occurs during food preparation, food waste that is present after eating, and food waste from food purges in free-living conditions. Participants will use the app to record food waste for approximately 4-7 days over the subsequent week. They will also be provided with the following: 1. Feedback on the amount of food waste their household created during the first week, 2. A goal to reduce the next week's food waste by 20% or more, and 3. Tips on how to reduce household food waste adapted from current consumer campaigns | Behavioural | Phase 2: RCT Food Waste Reduction |
Primary outcome
Phase 1: Food Waste Error
Time frame: Visit 1
Participant estimations of food waste using the following three experimental methods as compared to the criterion value of weighed waste collected by study staff: 1) the FoodImage App (FoodImage app estimates minus the criterion value of lab personnel measured weighed food waste), 2) pen and paper diary with visual estimation of food amounts (pen and paper estimates minus the criterion value), and 3) pen and paper diary with a scale (pen and paper dairy accompanied by a scale minus directly weighed foods by lab personnel). All food values are in grams. The error values noted here represent less accurate estimates the further away they are from zero, either in the positive or negative direction. There are no min and max values to error measures.
1 secondary outcome
Phase 2: Weight of All Household Waste
Time frame: Baseline to Day 14
Results and safety
Loading the posted results from ClinicalTrials.gov…
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 24 Jan 2025.
- Posted resultsParticipant flow, baseline, all outcome measures and adverse events.
- Derived from this study: PubMed 32773964Roe BE, Qi D, Beyl RA, Neubig KE, Martin CK, Apolzan JW. The Validity, Time Burden, and User Satisfaction of the FoodImage Smartphone App for Food Waste Measurement Versus Diaries: A Randomized Crossover Trial. Resour Conserv Recycl. 2020 Sep;160:104858. doi: 10.1016/j.resconrec.2020.104858. Epub 2020 May 21.
- Individual participant dataSharing planned: No
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part. This study is not recruiting at the moment.
Corby K Martin, Ph.D. principal investigator
Pennington Biomedical Research Center
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study testing Natural Environment/Stress Management and Natural Environment/Reduce Food Waste in people with Food Habits, run by Pennington Biomedical Research Center at 1 site in United States.
The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.
Who may be eligible to take part?
The sponsor lists 7 inclusion and 4 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.
Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?
The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 24 Jan 2025. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
Where is the study taking place?
The record lists 1 site in United States. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.
What are the possible benefits and risks?
They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.
Are results available for this study?
Yes. Results are posted in the registry (first posted 24 Jan 2025). A summary is in the For doctors view, and the full results are on ClinicalTrials.gov.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Phase 1: Food Waste Error (time frame: Visit 1). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT03309306, which also lists 1 linked publication.
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?
No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.
How often is this information updated?
AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 24 Jan 2025.