An understanding of the validity and spatial accuracy of the FHRS data will help determine whether the dataset can be used for evaluation and surveillance of the food environment by public health teams and researchers. These field data are then treated as a gold standard for comparison against the FHRS data. Field validation involved a researcher recording the business name and geographical coordinates of all business premises selling food in the selected field work locations. This study aims to assess the validity and spatial accuracy of the Food Standards Agency (FSA) Food Hygiene Rating Scheme (FHRS) data using field validation methodology in the North East of England. 15 Similar methods have also been used to assess the accuracy of physical activity facilities data in the USA, motivated by the association between access to play parks and health. Analysis of commercial data in Canada found 75% of food outlets in the field were within 50 m of their recorded location in the data. 14 While there are many field validation studies of commercially available business data, 11 few studies consider the spatial accuracy of data on the food environment. 1, 4 Limitations of these data sources include lack of national coverage, resource intensive data collation, infrequent updates, restrictive terms and conditions of use and financial cost. Examples of data sources used in food environments research to date include commercially available business data such as the Yellow Pages, data from companies such as Ordnance Survey, company websites or Google Maps and data obtained from local government under Freedom of Information requests. The lack of evidence on the effectiveness of these planning policies may result from insufficient or inadequate data pertaining to the neighbourhood food environment and locations of food outlets. 6, 9 Despite their widespread uptake, there is currently no evidence regarding the effectiveness of these LA restrictions on improving health or reducing health inequalities. Thus, it is important to understand how these geographical restrictions shape the food environment. Much of the planning guidance employed by LAs restricts the number of new outlets within a geographical area such as within 400 m of a school.
8, 11 Around 50% of LAs have a planning policy to control numbers of takeaway and fast food outlets.
LAs in England can influence the proliferation of food establishments with planning policies described in local plans and planning guidance. Given their public health obligations, many LAs have taken an active role in managing the food environment, often through the use of planning policy to limit the number of new takeaway food outlets. 13 The review identified key areas that can be targeted by LAs through policy, two of which were access to healthy food and neighbourhood design. 11, 12 An umbrella review by Public Health England assessed the importance of the built and natural environment on health. In England since 2013, local authorities (LAs) have responsibility for public health including oversight of obesity, community nutrition and promoting physical activity. 8, 9 Given the associations between the food environment and health, researchers have expressed a need for longitudinal data to assess the impact of changes to the food environment. 6, 7 Unhealthy food outlets tend to cluster in more socially deprived areas and those from lower socioeconomic status groups are more vulnerable to the resulting detrimental effects on diet and health. 4, 5 There are also important health inequalities around access to healthier food. 3 Lifestyle and diet contribute to observed socioeconomic differences in weight and obesity. 1, 2 Proximity to fast food outlets is associated with increased obesity, particularly for children. The food environment is thought to play a role in obesity rates and other chronic health conditions. Food environment, foodscape, field validity, spatial accuracy Introduction
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