Identifying Online Only Delivery Food Outlets in the North of England Using Data from Food Delivery Apps

Identifying Online Only Delivery Food Outlets in the North of England Using Data from Food Delivery Apps | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Identifying Online Only Delivery Food Outlets in the North of England Using Data from Food Delivery Apps Hannah Groves, Daniel Clarkson, Emma Boyland, Nick Shaw, Amelia A Lake, and 8 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-9051453/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted 9 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Background Local Government in England is responsible for promoting a healthy food environment. Online only food outlets create challenges to achieving this goal. This research explored prevalence of online only delivery kitchens in four Northern areas in England and if current data collection methods for monitoring the food environment can capture these outlets. Methods Data was collected using automated searches on food delivery websites for four areas in the North of England. Data from the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and Google were used for business registration details, location and validation. Prevalence of outlets adjusted by population size, premise type, Positive Predicted Value for comparing accuracy with the FSA data and Sensitivity were estimated. Results Newcastle had 118 online only delivery food outlets or 15 per 100,000 people, 116 outlets or 59 per 100,000 people in Gateshead, 36 outlets or 9 per 100,000 people in Middlesbrough, and 107 outlets or 26 per 100,000 people in Lancaster. Approximately 40% were operating from existing business sites. PPV was 100% in all areas. Sensitivity was 17.4% in Gateshead, 26.2% in Lancaster, 9.1% in Middlesborough, and 15.9% in Newcastle upon Tyne. Conclusions Policy tools available to manage the food environment may need to be re-designed. food environment public health online food outlets England Figures Figure 1 Introduction The Health and Social Care Act 2012 gave Local Authorities (local government) in England the statutory duty to support improving population health [ 1 ]. Drawing upon a robust evidence base demonstrating a relationship between childhood obesity and the food environment [ 2 , 3 ], national public health guidance was developed to encourage and support Local Authorities to use the planning system to create environments that are supportive of promoting a healthy weight [ 4 ]. Approximately 50% of Local Authorities have adopted planning guidelines restricting planning permission for new takeaways to promote a healthier food environment [ 5 ]. There is a growing body of evidence that planning policy can reduce the density and proportion of takeaways [ 6 ]. However, over the past decade and accelerated by the Covid-19 pandemic there has been a growth in online only delivery food outlets [7]. These types of businesses can operate out of individual homes, industrial units, or from existing food businesses [ 8 ]. This means that these outlets may not be classified by planning policy as takeaways and thus not be restricted by planning guidance used by Local Authorities to promote a healthy food environment. Thus, it is important to understand the prevalence of these types of outlets, where they are operating from (e.g. industrial unit, existing food business), and if these outlets are currently captured in datasets used to monitor the food environment such as the Food Standard Agency Food Hygiene Rating Scheme Data [ 9 ]. This information is essential for public health teams within Local Authorities to be able to support the promotion of a healthy food environment going forward. The research aims to estimate the prevalence of online only food outlets, identify what type of premise they operate out of and if these outlets are captured in the Food Standard Agency Food Hygiene Rating Scheme data in four areas in the North of England namely Gateshead, Lancaster, Middlesbrough, and Newcastle upon Tyne. Gateshead, Middlesbrough and Newcastle upon Tyne are all in the 20% most deprived deciles whereas Lancaster is in the bottom third [10]. Our findings can be used to help the development of policy going forward to support the promotion of a healthy food environment. Methods We followed the STROBE checklist for cross-sectional studies. Data This study uses data from Deliveroo, Uber Eats, and Just Eat[1] websites as well as information from Census 2021 [11] and the FSA Food Hygiene Rating Scheme Data [12]. Accessing Data Figure 1 presents a flow chart of the data acquisition and cleaning process. This study employed a combination of manual and automated data scraping from social media and food delivery websites, and field validation using Google Maps to gather data on online only delivery food outlets operating in four Northern areas in the UK. Python code which is available via: https://github.com/Hannah-Groves/Dark-kitchens-project/ was used to extract data from Deliveroo, UberEATS, and Just Eat – chosen due to their popularity and widespread use across the UK - websites, including details such as restaurant names, addresses, types of cuisine, delivery times, prices, and food hygiene ratings. The code was run when most takeaways are expected to be open (e.g. 7pm on a Friday evening), since this is when food delivery websites will show the most information on food outlets available in the area. Therefore, it is important to note that running the code at a different day and time may yield different results. The scraped data was then cleaned and organised using Excel. This involved removing duplicates, correcting inconsistencies, and categorising the data to ease interpretation. To validate the accuracy of the data collected from food delivery websites, each address was examined using Google Maps and Street View. This process locating each food place on the map and using a 360-degree view of the address to check for customer-facing shop fronts. This manual verification process helped identify any discrepancies or errors in the automated data collection. When errors were encountered (e.g. incorrect address format or details), the collected address was corrected and substituted with the accurate format and information. We found 17 address errors out of a total of 1,640. Outcome Variables Count of online only delivery food outlets that delivered to the four areas identified via delivery food apps. Counts of online only delivery food outlets in each of the four areas that are recorded in the FSA FHRS datasets. Positive Predicted Value of discrepancies between FSA FHRS data and food delivery apps and Sensitivity which shows percentage of online delivery food outlets of total food businesses in each of the four areas. Count and percentage of online only delivery food outlets that are operating out of customer facing food outlets currently operating as take aways (where food is primarily offered for consumption off the premises) and customer facing food outlets currently operating as either restaurants or pubs. Count of online only delivery food outlets standardised per 100,000 in the population for the four areas. Analysis Descriptive analysis was performed. We estimated the counts and means. The mean for number of online only food outlets was standardised for population size. We estimated the Positive Predicted Value (PPV) and Sensitivity to assess discrepancies between the FSA FHRS data and the food delivery apps. PPV=True Positive/(True Positive + False Positive) (1) Sensitivity= True Positive/(True Positive + False Negative) (2) Where True Positive is the number of outlets present in both the food delivery app and the FSA FHRS data. False Positive is the number of outlets present in the food delivery app but absent in the FSA FHRS data, and False Negative is the number of outlets present in the FHRS data but absent in the food delivery app data (number of food businesses in each area). [1] Deliveroo: Deliveroo - Takeaway Food Delivery from Local Restaurants & Shops Uber Eats: Uber Eats | Food delivery and takeaway | Order online from restaurants near you Just Eat: Order takeaway online from 30,000+ food delivery restaurants | Just Eat (just-eat.co.uk) Results Table 1 presents descriptive statistics for the five outcome variables: 1) count of food outlets on food delivery apps; 2) count of food outlets identified in the FSA FHRS data; 3) PPV and Sensitivity; 4) count and percentage of online only delivery food outlets operating from multi-site businesses; and 5) count of online only delivery food outlets standardised per 100,000 in the population. Newcastle upon Tyne had 118 outlets available on the food delivery app, followed by Gateshead with 116, Middlesbrough had 36 outlets and Lancaster had 28. In the FSA FHRS data, there were 624 food businesses in the FSA FHRS data in Newcastle upon Tyne, 551 food businesses in the in Gateshead, 358 in Middlesbrough and 107 in Lancaster. Comparing the data on food delivery apps with data on food outlets available from the FSA FHRS data we find a PPV of 100% in all four areas. Gateshead had a Sensitivity of 17.4%, Lancaster had a Sensitivity of 26.2%, Middlesbrough had a Sensitivity of 9.1% and Newcastle upon Tyne with a Sensitivity of 15.9%. In Newcastle upon Tyne, 48 or 40% of online only delivery food outlets operated from multi-business sites (using the same address, premises and/or kitchen facilities), Gateshead had 43 or 37% of all online only food delivery outlets operated from multi-business sites and Middlesbrough had 16 or 44% of all online only food delivery outlets were multi-business sites. Lancaster had 12 or 42% of all online only food delivery outlets operated from multi-business sites. Adjusting online only food delivery outlets by population size, Newcastle upon Tyne had 15 online only delivery food outlets per 100,000 people, Gateshead 59 per 100,000 people. Middlesbrough had 9 per 100,000 people. Lancaster had 27 per 100,000 people. Table 1 Descriptive Statistics of online only food delivery outlets in the 4 northern areas Number of outlets on food delivery apps* GATESHEAD LANCASTER MIDDLESBROUGH NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE 116 28 36 118 Number of establishments providing or selling food in FSA FHRS + 551 107 358 624 Number of online only food outlets in FSA FHRS data 116 28 36 118 PPV 100% 100% 100% 100% Sensitivity 17.4% 26.2% 9.1% 15.9% Number (%) of outlets at multi-business sites 43 (37%) 12 (42%) 16 (44%) 48 (40%) Number of outlets per 100k people 59 27 9 15 Notes: *Food Delivery Apps searched include Deliveroo, UberEATS, and Just Eat + This includes all food businesses that are eligible for an inspection by the Food Standards Agency. Discussion Main finding of this study The study explored the prevalence of online only food delivery outlets, identified what type of premise they operate out of and if these outlets are captured in existing data to monitor the food environment (FSA FHRS) for four Northern areas in the UK: Gateshead, Newcastle upon Tyne, Middlesborough, and Lancaster. The highest prevalence of online only food delivery outlets was found in Gateshead and Newcastle upon Tyne. However, when adjusting by population size Gateshead had the highest prevalence with 59 per 100,000 people and Lancaster had the second highest prevalence at 27 per 100,000 people. For all four areas all online only delivery food outlets were present in the FHRS FSA data suggesting that current mechanisms for monitoring the food environment are able to record these type of food outlets. As PPV was 100%, the Sensitivity measure captures the percentage of food businesses that are delivery only in the wider food environment for each of the four areas. This suggests that between 10% to 26% of food businesses are operating in the virtual food environment. Online only delivery food outlets may impact on local government’s ability to promote a healthy environment. Current measures to manage the food environment using planning policy such as supplementary planning documents [13] would not apply to many online only delivery food outlets such as multi-business sites and industrial units. Additionally, delivery only food outlets go beyond Local Authority borders and are thus beyond the jurisdiction to manage and control the food environment. Gateshead has a supplementary planning document in place that effectively bans any new takeaways as all wards in the borough have high rates of childhood obesity and a high density of existing takeaways, which had been shown to reduce the proportion and density of hot food takeaways in the food environment [6]. However, it had the second highest non-adjusted count of online only food delivery outlets and the highest prevalence after adjusting for population size. What is already known on this topic Advances in e-commerce technology has facilitated growth of the online food delivery market [7]. Online delivery services increase the availability of unhealthy food contributing to an unhealthy food environment [14]. What this study adds This study provides information on the prevalence, type of premises operating out of, and identification in existing datasets of online only delivery food outlets for four areas in the North of England. This is an under researched area and the results highlight potential challenges for Local Authorities in promoting a healthy food environment. Future research and policy need to consider the classification of online only food delivery outlets in planning terms. Another consideration is changing the geographical boundaries for making planning authorities such as on larger geographical scales like combined mayoral authorities to help promote a healthy food environment. Limitations of this study The data from food delivery apps on online only delivery food outlets is dynamic and changes by time of day. It is not clear on the rate of entry or exit to the market for this type of business. Thus, our findings are a snapshot in time. Some of the delivery only online food outlets also provide a pickup service, currently we have included these in our study. Our findings are then an upper bound of available outlets in the virtual space. However, our results highlight gaps with current policy tools that warrant further exploration and consideration in both research and policy making. Our analysis is limited to four areas in Northern England. Future research is required in other regions and areas in both the UK and internationally. Declarations Ethics approval and consent to participate: This study did not use personal data and therefore does not require ethical approval or consent to participate. Consent for publication: Not applicable Availability of data and materials: The datasets generated from this project came from : Deliveroo - Takeaway Food Delivery from Local Restaurants & Shops; Uber Eats | Food delivery and takeaway | Order online from restaurants near you; Order takeaway online from 30,000+ food delivery restaurants | Just Eat (just-eat.co.uk). Meta data to extract the information used in the study can be found here: https://github.com/Hannah-Groves/Dark-kitchens-project.git Competing interests: None Funding: This research was funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR160406). HB and DC are supported by the NIHR Applied Research Collaboration for the North West Coast (NIHR200182) (HB and DC). Authors' contributions: AAL, HJM, EB, SL, CO’M, ET, MC, TT and HB conceptualised the study design and acquired the research funding. CB and DC helped to codevelop the data analysis plan. HG extracted the data and undertook the analysis. HB and DC supervised HG. HG with support from HB drafted the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript Acknowledgements: Not Applicable References Health and Social Care Act 2012, c. 7 . Available at: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2012/7/contents/enacted Patterson R, Risby A, Chan MY. Consumption of takeaway and fast food in a deprived inner London Borough: are they associated with childhood obesity?. BMJ open. 2012 Jan 1;2(3):e000402. Poti JM, Popkin BM. Trends in energy intake among US children by eating location and food source, 1977-2006. Journal of the American Dietetic Association. 2011 Aug 1;111(8):1156-64. Using the planning system to promote healthy weight environments Guidance and supplementary planning document template for Local Authority public health and planning teams [Internet]. Available from: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5e3ae46240f0b60915732cc3/PHE_Planning_healthy_weight_environments_guidance__1_.pdf Keeble M, Burgoine T, White M, Summerbell C, Cummins S, Adams J. How does local government use the planning system to regulate hot food takeaway outlets? A census of current practice in England using document review. Health & place. 2019 May 1;57:171-8. Brown H, Xiang H, Albani V, Goffe L, Akhter N, Lake A, Sorrell S, Gibson E, Wildman J. No new fast-food outlets allowed! Evaluating the effect of planning policy on the local food environment in the North East of England. Social Science & Medicine. 2022 Aug 1;306:115126. ‌Bradford CP, O'Malley CL, Moore HJ, Gray N, Townshend TG, Chang M, Mathews C, Lake AA. ‘Acceleration’of the food delivery marketplace: Perspectives of Local Authority professionals in the North‐East of England on temporary COVID regulations. Nutrition Bulletin. 2024 Apr 11. OpenTable. How to open a dark kitchen: What restaurant owners need to know [Internet]. OpenTable Resources. 2024. Available from: https://restaurant.opentable.co.uk/resources/open-dark-kitchen/ Kirkman S, Hollingsworth B, Lake A, Hinke S, Sorrell S, Burgoine T, Brown H. Field validity and spatial accuracy of Food Standards Agency Food Hygiene Rating scheme data for England. Journal of Public Health. 2021 Dec;43(4):e720-7. ‌Exploring local income deprivation [Internet]. www.ons.gov.uk. Available from: https://www.ons.gov.uk/visualisations/dvc1371/ ONS. Population estimates - Office for National Statistics [Internet]. Ons.gov.uk. 2021. Available from: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/populationandmigration/populationestimates Food Standards Agency. Food Standards Agency - Search for food hygiene ratings [Internet]. Food.gov.uk. 2025. Available from: https://ratings.food.gov.uk/ O’Malley CL, Lake AA, Moore HJ, Gray N, Bradford C, Petrokofsky C, Papadaki A, Spence S, Lloyd S, Chang M, Townshend TG. Regulatory mechanisms to create healthier environments: Planning appeals and hot food takeaways in England. Perspectives in Public Health. 2023 Nov;143(6):313-23. Rinaldi C, D’aguilar M, Egan M. Understanding the online environment for the delivery of food, alcohol and tobacco: an exploratory analysis of ‘dark kitchens’ and rapid grocery delivery services. International journal of environmental research and public health. 2022 May 2;19(9):5523. Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revision requested 27 Apr, 2026 Reviews received at journal 21 Apr, 2026 Reviews received at journal 16 Apr, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 08 Apr, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 06 Apr, 2026 Reviewers invited by journal 10 Mar, 2026 Editor assigned by journal 10 Mar, 2026 Submission checks completed at journal 10 Mar, 2026 First submitted to journal 06 Mar, 2026 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. 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14:09:15","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9051453/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-9051453/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":104565075,"identity":"11a92796-6a72-48d3-95a2-c83f0f8cb102","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-03-13 11:11:55","extension":"png","order_by":1,"title":"Figure 1","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":41401,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eData Acquisition and Cleaning Process\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAlt text: \u003c/strong\u003eThere are five boxes in total three on the right hand side and two on the left. The top three boxes contain the text Collect Data from Just Eat Website, Collet data from Deliveroo website and Collect Data from Uber Eats website. There are three arrows connecting the three boxes. An arrow connects to a fourth box with the text Collating data and eliminating duplicates. The final and fifth box is connected by an arrow to the fourth box and contains the text Field Validation of location via Google Maps.\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"1.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-9051453/v1/b42ad124ab31b227957ee134.png"},{"id":104781104,"identity":"aa38ceab-2d5d-4a3f-849d-1baa3787d430","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-03-17 07:54:47","extension":"pdf","order_by":0,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":482130,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"manuscript.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-9051453/v1/244a6660-7332-42c3-b97c-0c09a218c87a.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"Identifying Online Only Delivery Food Outlets in the North of England Using Data from Food Delivery Apps","fulltext":[{"header":"Introduction","content":"\u003cp\u003eThe Health and Social Care Act 2012 gave Local Authorities (local government) in England the statutory duty to support improving population health [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR1\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e]. Drawing upon a robust evidence base demonstrating a relationship between childhood obesity and the food environment [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR2\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR3\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e], national public health guidance was developed to encourage and support Local Authorities to use the planning system to create environments that are supportive of promoting a healthy weight [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR4\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e]. Approximately 50% of Local Authorities have adopted planning guidelines restricting planning permission for new takeaways to promote a healthier food environment [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR5\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e5\u003c/span\u003e]. There is a growing body of evidence that planning policy can reduce the density and proportion of takeaways [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR6\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e6\u003c/span\u003e].\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eHowever, over the past decade and accelerated by the Covid-19 pandemic there has been a growth in online only delivery food outlets [7]. These types of businesses can operate out of individual homes, industrial units, or from existing food businesses [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR7\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e8\u003c/span\u003e]. This means that these outlets may not be classified by planning policy as takeaways and thus not be restricted by planning guidance used by Local Authorities to promote a healthy food environment. Thus, it is important to understand the prevalence of these types of outlets, where they are operating from (e.g. industrial unit, existing food business), and if these outlets are currently captured in datasets used to monitor the food environment such as the Food Standard Agency Food Hygiene Rating Scheme Data [\u003cspan citationid=\"CR8\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e9\u003c/span\u003e]. This information is essential for public health teams within Local Authorities to be able to support the promotion of a healthy food environment going forward.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe research aims to estimate the prevalence of online only food outlets, identify what type of premise they operate out of and if these outlets are captured in the Food Standard Agency Food Hygiene Rating Scheme data in four areas in the North of England namely Gateshead, Lancaster, Middlesbrough, and Newcastle upon Tyne. Gateshead, Middlesbrough and Newcastle upon Tyne are all in the 20% most deprived deciles whereas Lancaster is in the bottom third [10]. Our findings can be used to help the development of policy going forward to support the promotion of a healthy food environment.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"Methods","content":"\u003cp\u003eWe followed the STROBE checklist for cross-sectional studies.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eData\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis study uses data from Deliveroo, Uber Eats, and Just Eat[1] websites as well as information from Census 2021 [11] and the FSA Food Hygiene Rating Scheme Data [12].\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eAccessing Data\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFigure 1 presents a flow chart of the data acquisition and cleaning process. This study employed a combination of manual and automated data scraping from social media and food delivery websites, and field validation using Google Maps to gather data on online only delivery food outlets operating in four Northern areas in the UK. Python code which is available via: \u0026nbsp; https://github.com/Hannah-Groves/Dark-kitchens-project/ was used to extract data from Deliveroo, UberEATS, and Just Eat \u0026ndash; chosen due to their popularity and widespread use across the UK - websites, including details such as restaurant names, addresses, types of cuisine, delivery times, prices, and food hygiene ratings. The code was run when most takeaways are expected to be open (e.g. 7pm on a Friday evening), since this is when food delivery websites will show the most information on food outlets available in the area. Therefore, it is important to note that running the code at a different day and time may yield different results.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe scraped data was then cleaned and organised using Excel. This involved removing duplicates, correcting inconsistencies, and categorising the data to ease interpretation.\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTo validate the accuracy of the data collected from food delivery websites, each address was examined using Google Maps and Street View. \u0026nbsp;This process locating each food place on the map and using a 360-degree view of the address to check for customer-facing shop fronts. This manual verification process helped identify any discrepancies or errors in the automated data collection. When errors were encountered (e.g. incorrect address format or details), the collected address was corrected and substituted with the accurate format and information. We found 17 address errors out of a total of 1,640.\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eOutcome Variables\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003col\u003e\n \u003cli\u003eCount of online only delivery food outlets that delivered to the four areas identified via delivery food apps.\u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003eCounts of online only delivery food outlets in each of the four areas that are recorded in the FSA FHRS datasets.\u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003ePositive Predicted Value of discrepancies between FSA FHRS data and food delivery apps and Sensitivity which shows percentage of online delivery food outlets of total food businesses in each of the four areas.\u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003eCount and percentage of online only delivery food outlets that are operating out of customer facing food outlets currently operating as take aways (where food is primarily offered for consumption off the premises) and customer facing food outlets currently operating as either restaurants or pubs.\u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003eCount of online only delivery food outlets standardised per 100,000 in the population for the four areas.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ol\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eAnalysis\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDescriptive analysis was performed. We estimated the counts and means. The mean for number of online only food outlets was standardised for population size.\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe estimated the Positive Predicted Value (PPV) and Sensitivity to assess discrepancies between the FSA FHRS data and the food delivery apps.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePPV=True Positive/(True Positive + False Positive) \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp;(1)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSensitivity= True Positive/(True Positive + False Negative) \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; (2)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhere True Positive is the number of outlets present in both the food delivery app and the FSA FHRS data. False Positive is the number of outlets present in the food delivery app \u0026nbsp;but absent in the FSA FHRS data, and False Negative is the number of outlets present in the FHRS data but absent in the food delivery app data (number of food businesses in each area).\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"ftn1\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e[1] Deliveroo: Deliveroo - Takeaway Food Delivery from Local Restaurants \u0026amp; Shops\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eUber Eats: Uber Eats | Food delivery and takeaway | Order online from restaurants near you\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eJust Eat: Order takeaway online from 30,000+ food delivery restaurants | Just Eat (just-eat.co.uk)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"Results","content":"\u003cp\u003eTable \u003cspan class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e presents descriptive statistics for the five outcome variables: 1) count of food outlets on food delivery apps; 2) count of food outlets identified in the FSA FHRS data; 3) PPV and Sensitivity; 4) count and percentage of online only delivery food outlets operating from multi-site businesses; and 5) count of online only delivery food outlets standardised per 100,000 in the population. Newcastle upon Tyne had 118 outlets available on the food delivery app, followed by Gateshead with 116, Middlesbrough had 36 outlets and Lancaster had 28. In the FSA FHRS data, there were 624 food businesses in the FSA FHRS data in Newcastle upon Tyne, 551 food businesses in the in Gateshead, 358 in Middlesbrough and 107 in Lancaster. Comparing the data on food delivery apps with data on food outlets available from the FSA FHRS data we find a PPV of 100% in all four areas. Gateshead had a Sensitivity of 17.4%, Lancaster had a Sensitivity of 26.2%, Middlesbrough had a Sensitivity of 9.1% and Newcastle upon Tyne with a Sensitivity of 15.9%. In Newcastle upon Tyne, 48 or 40% of online only delivery food outlets operated from multi-business sites (using the same address, premises and/or kitchen facilities), Gateshead had 43 or 37% of all online only food delivery outlets operated from multi-business sites and Middlesbrough had 16 or 44% of all online only food delivery outlets were multi-business sites. Lancaster had 12 or 42% of all online only food delivery outlets operated from multi-business sites. Adjusting online only food delivery outlets by population size, Newcastle upon Tyne had 15 online only delivery food outlets per 100,000 people, Gateshead 59 per 100,000 people. Middlesbrough had 9 per 100,000 people. Lancaster had 27 per 100,000 people.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003ctable id=\"Tab1\" border=\"1\"\u003e\n \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e\n \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 1\u003c/div\u003e\n \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eDescriptive Statistics of online only food delivery outlets in the 4 northern areas\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/div\u003e\n \u003c/caption\u003e\n \u003ccolgroup cols=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/colgroup\u003e\n \u003cthead\u003e\n \u003ctr\u003e\n \u003cth align=\"left\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of outlets on food delivery\u0026nbsp;\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u0026nbsp;apps*\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/th\u003e\n \u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eGATESHEAD\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/th\u003e\n \u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eLANCASTER\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/th\u003e\n \u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eMIDDLESBROUGH\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/th\u003e\n \u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eNEWCASTLE UPON TYNE\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/th\u003e\n \u003c/tr\u003e\n \u003ctr\u003e\n \u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e116\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/th\u003e\n \u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e28\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/th\u003e\n \u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e36\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/th\u003e\n \u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e118\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/th\u003e\n \u003c/tr\u003e\n \u003c/thead\u003e\n \u003ctbody\u003e\n \u003ctr\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of establishments providing or selling food in FSA FHRS\u003c/strong\u003e\u003csup\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e+\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/sup\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e551\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e107\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e358\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e624\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003c/tr\u003e\n \u003ctr\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of online only food outlets in FSA FHRS data\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e116\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e28\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e36\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e118\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003c/tr\u003e\n \u003ctr\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePPV\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e100%\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e100%\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e100%\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e100%\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003c/tr\u003e\n \u003ctr\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSensitivity\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e17.4%\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e26.2%\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e9.1%\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e15.9%\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003c/tr\u003e\n \u003ctr\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eNumber (%) of outlets at multi-business sites\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e43 (37%)\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e12 (42%)\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e16 (44%)\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e48 (40%)\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003c/tr\u003e\n \u003ctr\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of outlets per 100k people\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e59\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e27\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e9\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e15\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003c/tr\u003e\n \u003c/tbody\u003e\n \u003ctfoot\u003e\n \u003ctr\u003e\n \u003ctd colspan=\"5\"\u003eNotes: *Food Delivery Apps searched include Deliveroo, UberEATS, and Just Eat\u003c/td\u003e\n \u003c/tr\u003e\n \u003ctr\u003e\n \u003ctd colspan=\"5\"\u003e+ This includes all food businesses that are eligible for an inspection by the Food Standards Agency.\u003c/td\u003e\n \u003c/tr\u003e\n \u003c/tfoot\u003e\n \u003c/table\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"Discussion","content":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eMain finding of this study\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe study explored the prevalence of online only food delivery outlets, identified what type of premise they operate out of and if these outlets are captured in existing data to monitor the food environment (FSA FHRS) for four Northern areas in the UK: Gateshead, Newcastle upon Tyne, Middlesborough, and Lancaster. \u0026nbsp;The highest prevalence of online only food delivery outlets was found in Gateshead and Newcastle upon Tyne. \u0026nbsp;However, when adjusting by population size Gateshead had the highest prevalence with 59 per 100,000 people and Lancaster had the second highest prevalence at 27 per 100,000 people. For all four areas all online only delivery food outlets were present in the FHRS FSA data suggesting that current mechanisms for monitoring the food environment are able to record these type of food outlets. \u0026nbsp;As PPV was 100%, the Sensitivity measure captures the percentage of food businesses that are delivery only in the wider food environment for each of the four areas. \u0026nbsp;This suggests that between 10% to 26% of food businesses are operating in the virtual food environment. \u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOnline only delivery food outlets may impact on local government’s ability to promote a healthy environment. \u0026nbsp;Current measures to manage the food environment using planning policy such as supplementary planning documents [13] would not apply to many online only delivery food outlets such as multi-business sites and industrial units. Additionally, delivery only food outlets go beyond Local Authority borders and are thus beyond the jurisdiction to manage and control the food environment. Gateshead has a supplementary planning document in place that effectively bans any new takeaways as all wards in the borough have high rates of childhood obesity and a high density of existing takeaways, which had been shown to reduce the proportion and density of hot food takeaways in the food environment [6]. \u0026nbsp;However, it had the second highest non-adjusted count of online only food delivery outlets and the highest prevalence after adjusting for population size. \u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eWhat is already known on this topic\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAdvances in e-commerce technology has facilitated growth of the online food delivery market [7]. \u0026nbsp; Online delivery services increase the availability of unhealthy food contributing to an unhealthy food environment [14]. \u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eWhat this study adds\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis study provides information on the prevalence, type of premises operating out of, and identification in existing datasets of online only delivery food outlets for four areas in the North of England. \u0026nbsp;This is an under researched area and the results highlight potential challenges for Local Authorities in promoting a healthy food environment. \u0026nbsp; Future research and policy need to consider the classification of online only food delivery outlets in planning terms. \u0026nbsp;Another consideration is changing the geographical boundaries for making planning authorities such as on larger geographical scales like combined mayoral authorities to help promote a healthy food environment. \u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eLimitations of this study\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe data from food delivery apps on online only delivery food outlets is dynamic and changes by time of day. \u0026nbsp;It is not clear on the rate of entry or exit to the market for this type of business. Thus, our findings are a snapshot in time. \u0026nbsp;Some of the delivery only online food outlets also provide a pickup service, currently we have included these in our study. \u0026nbsp;Our findings are then an upper bound of available outlets in the virtual space. \u0026nbsp;However, our results highlight gaps with current policy tools that warrant further exploration and consideration in both research and policy making. \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp;Our analysis is limited to four areas in Northern England. \u0026nbsp;Future research is required in other regions and areas in both the UK and internationally.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"Declarations","content":"\u003cp\u003eEthics approval and consent to participate: This study did not use personal data and therefore does not require ethical approval or consent to participate. \u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eConsent for publication: Not applicable\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAvailability of data and materials: The datasets generated from this project came from : Deliveroo - Takeaway Food Delivery from Local Restaurants \u0026amp; Shops; Uber Eats | Food delivery and takeaway | Order online from restaurants near you; Order takeaway online from 30,000+ food delivery restaurants | Just Eat (just-eat.co.uk). Meta data to extract the information used in the study can be found here: https://github.com/Hannah-Groves/Dark-kitchens-project.git\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCompeting interests: None\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFunding: This research was funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR160406). HB and DC are supported by the NIHR Applied Research Collaboration for the North West Coast (NIHR200182) (HB and DC).\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAuthors' contributions: AAL, HJM, EB, SL, CO’M, ET, MC, TT and HB conceptualised the study design and acquired the research funding. CB and DC helped to codevelop the data analysis plan. HG extracted the data and undertook the analysis. HB and DC supervised HG. HG with support from HB drafted the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAcknowledgements: Not Applicable\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"References","content":"\u003col\u003e\n \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eHealth and Social Care Act 2012, c. 7\u003c/em\u003e. Available at: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2012/7/contents/enacted\u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003ePatterson R, Risby A, Chan MY. Consumption of takeaway and fast food in a deprived inner London Borough: are they associated with childhood obesity?. BMJ open. 2012 Jan 1;2(3):e000402.\u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003ePoti JM, Popkin BM. Trends in energy intake among US children by eating location and food source, 1977-2006. Journal of the American Dietetic Association. 2011 Aug 1;111(8):1156-64.\u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003eUsing the planning system to promote healthy weight environments Guidance and supplementary planning document template for Local Authority public health and planning teams [Internet]. Available from: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5e3ae46240f0b60915732cc3/PHE_Planning_healthy_weight_environments_guidance__1_.pdf\u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003eKeeble M, Burgoine T, White M, Summerbell C, Cummins S, Adams J. How does local government use the planning system to regulate hot food takeaway outlets? A census of current practice in England using document review. Health \u0026amp; place. 2019 May 1;57:171-8.\u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003eBrown H, Xiang H, Albani V, Goffe L, Akhter N, Lake A, Sorrell S, Gibson E, Wildman J. No new fast-food outlets allowed! Evaluating the effect of planning policy on the local food environment in the North East of England. Social Science \u0026amp; Medicine. 2022 Aug 1;306:115126.\u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003e\u0026zwnj;Bradford CP, O\u0026apos;Malley CL, Moore HJ, Gray N, Townshend TG, Chang M, Mathews C, Lake AA. \u0026lsquo;Acceleration\u0026rsquo;of the food delivery marketplace: Perspectives of Local Authority professionals in the North‐East of England on temporary COVID regulations. Nutrition Bulletin. 2024 Apr 11.\u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003eOpenTable. How to open a dark kitchen: What restaurant owners need to know [Internet]. OpenTable Resources. 2024. Available from: https://restaurant.opentable.co.uk/resources/open-dark-kitchen/\u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003eKirkman S, Hollingsworth B, Lake A, Hinke S, Sorrell S, Burgoine T, Brown H. Field validity and spatial accuracy of Food Standards Agency Food Hygiene Rating scheme data for England. Journal of Public Health. 2021 Dec;43(4):e720-7.\u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003e\u0026zwnj;Exploring local income deprivation [Internet]. www.ons.gov.uk. Available from: https://www.ons.gov.uk/visualisations/dvc1371/\u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003eONS. Population estimates - Office for National Statistics [Internet]. Ons.gov.uk. 2021. Available from: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/populationandmigration/populationestimates\u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003eFood Standards Agency. Food Standards Agency - Search for food hygiene ratings [Internet]. Food.gov.uk. 2025. Available from: https://ratings.food.gov.uk/\u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003eO\u0026rsquo;Malley CL, Lake AA, Moore HJ, Gray N, Bradford C, Petrokofsky C, Papadaki A, Spence S, Lloyd S, Chang M, Townshend TG. Regulatory mechanisms to create healthier environments: Planning appeals and hot food takeaways in England. Perspectives in Public Health. 2023 Nov;143(6):313-23.\u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003eRinaldi C, D\u0026rsquo;aguilar M, Egan M. Understanding the online environment for the delivery of food, alcohol and tobacco: an exploratory analysis of \u0026lsquo;dark kitchens\u0026rsquo; and rapid grocery delivery services. International journal of environmental research and public health. 2022 May 2;19(9):5523.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ol\u003e"}],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":true,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":false,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":true,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":false,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":false,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"bmc-public-health","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"pubh","sideBox":"Learn more about [BMC Public Health](http://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/)","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"https://www.editorialmanager.com/pubh/default.aspx","title":"BMC Public Health","twitterHandle":"@BMC_series","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"em","reportingPortfolio":"BMC Series","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"food environment, public health, online food outlets, England","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9051453/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-9051453/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eBackground\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eLocal Government in England is responsible for promoting a healthy food environment. Online only food outlets create challenges to achieving this goal. This research explored prevalence of online only delivery kitchens in four Northern areas in England and if current data collection methods for monitoring the food environment can capture these outlets.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eMethods\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eData was collected using automated searches on food delivery websites for four areas in the North of England. Data from the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and Google were used for business registration details, location and validation. Prevalence of outlets adjusted by population size, premise type, Positive Predicted Value for comparing accuracy with the FSA data and Sensitivity were estimated.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eResults\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eNewcastle had 118 online only delivery food outlets or 15 per 100,000 people, 116 outlets or 59 per 100,000 people in Gateshead, 36 outlets or 9 per 100,000 people in Middlesbrough, and 107 outlets or 26 per 100,000 people in Lancaster. Approximately 40% were operating from existing business sites. PPV was 100% in all areas. Sensitivity was 17.4% in Gateshead, 26.2% in Lancaster, 9.1% in Middlesborough, and 15.9% in Newcastle upon Tyne.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eConclusions\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003ePolicy tools available to manage the food environment may need to be re-designed.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Identifying Online Only Delivery Food Outlets in the North of England Using Data from Food Delivery Apps","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2026-03-13 11:11:20","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9051453/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0},{"type":"decision","content":"Revision requested","date":"2026-04-27T06:29:33+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2026-04-21T16:17:03+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2026-04-16T23:58:26+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"45419395681345408449858114242354953085","date":"2026-04-08T09:33:38+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"303927206967633745248096578952471164336","date":"2026-04-06T23:28:28+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewersInvited","content":"","date":"2026-03-11T03:28:22+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorAssigned","content":"","date":"2026-03-10T08:14:24+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"checksComplete","content":"","date":"2026-03-10T08:14:03+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"submitted","content":"BMC Public Health","date":"2026-03-06T14:03:53+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"bmc-public-health","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"pubh","sideBox":"Learn more about [BMC Public Health](http://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/)","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"https://www.editorialmanager.com/pubh/default.aspx","title":"BMC Public Health","twitterHandle":"@BMC_series","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"em","reportingPortfolio":"BMC Series","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"4f72a707-4c8d-4ad1-8aab-6f1175a23d39","owner":[],"postedDate":"March 13th, 2026","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"under-review","subjectAreas":[],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2026-05-14T13:54:22+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2026-03-13 11:11:20","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-9051453","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-9051453","identity":"rs-9051453","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"XKTyCvWXoU3ODBz1xrDgd","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}