Careplots provided a key role in assisting Westat secure a five-year USDA contract to integrate nutrition and food purchasing data. This project aims to link Circana (formerly IRI) food scanner data with the USDA Food and Nutrient Database for Dietary Studies (FNDDS) using modern Ai, Natura Language Processing and Large Language Models. Through this collaboration, Careplots will work with Westat’s food and nutrition science team to enhance data linkages, ultimately estimating national average prices of foods consumed by participants in “What We Eat in America,” the dietary component of NHANES (WWEIA/NHANES).
Household and store-based scanner data from IRI provide a robust foundation for food economics and policy research. However, while these data cover purchase details like prices and demographics for over 120,000 U.S. households, they lack specific nutrient information needed to evaluate the healthfulness of food purchases. By linking these purchase records with USDA nutrition databases, Careplots and Westat aim to support USDA research on diet quality, enabling the use of Healthy Eating Index (HEI) metrics to assess alignment with Dietary Guidelines for Americans.
As part of the project, Careplots will work with Westat data scientists, nutritionists and other experts to develop innovative methods to link Circana food scanner data with USDA’s nutrition databases, to create Purchase to Plate cross walk and update each year. The crosswalk allows USDA nutrition databases (nutrient and food group quantities) to be imported into the Circana data; purchase data to be attached to the USDA nutrition databases and compared to the recommendations in the Dietary Guidelines for Americans; and analysis to be conducted with the scanner data using nutrients beyond those provided by the Nutrition Facts Panel.
About Careplots:
Careplots is committed to transforming healthcare through data-driven innovation, offering data solutions to government agencies, healthcare providers, research institutions, and consumers. For more information, visit Careplots.
About Westat:
Westat’s mission is to improve lives through research, providing professional services that help clients achieve better outcomes in health, education, social policy, and transportation. For more information, visit Westat.
About USDA ERS:
The USDA Economic Research Service (ERS) conducts high-quality, objective research to inform public and private decision-making in agriculture, food, the environment, and rural America. For more information on ERS data products, visit the USDA ERS.