Is there a healthy-food premium? A cross-sectional analysis of the UK online food delivery sector.

Online food delivery (OFD) platforms account for a growing share of out-of-home meals, but their often poor nutritional quality may worsen diets and related health inequalities. Furthermore, pricing structures within this sector may be systematically incentivizing the selection of higher-calorie items. Using menu data collected in June 2023 from two major UK OFD platforms, this study examined 7392 unique adult menu items from large restaurant chains. The price-calorie relationship (per 100 kcal) was modelled using restaurant-chain fixed-effects regressions controlling for menu categories. Results indicated a significant nonlinear relationship: while price initially increased with calorie content (101.14 pence per additional 100 kcal, 95% CI [87.98, 114.29]), the rate of increase diminished by 2.19 pence per (100 kcal)2 (95% CI [1.50, 2.87]), suggesting a relative discount for higher-calorie options. Furthermore, menu items classified as 'healthier' (<600 kcal, consistent with recommendation on calorie content per meal in England) were priced relatively higher, costing 70.3 pence more per 100 kcal than items containing ≥600 kcal (95% CI [61.9, 78.8]) after controlling for menu categories. These findings suggest that pricing structures within the UK OFD sector financially favour higher-calorie options. Policy makers should consider strategies addressing pricing mechanisms to ensure healthier options are equally accessible.