Studying the Impact of Financial Incentives at Point of Purchase on Low-Income Consumers’ Purchase of Healthy Food and, Subsequently, on Family Health

To address diet quality disparities in low-income families, policymakers and health experts recommend strategies such as financial incentives to promote consumption of fruits and vegetables (FVs). Real-time incentives for purchasing FV and variable incentives are promising, untested strategies to improve families’ diets and health. The goal of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of More

Evaluation of the USDA FINI Program Finds Benefits for Consumers, Farmers and Retailers, and Local Economies

In December 2018, Congress passed a new farm bill which included a reauthorization of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food Insecurity Nutrition Incentive (FINI) Grant Program. This brief summarizes the findings of a recent qualitative evaluation of FINI, which concludes that the program has benefits for consumers, farmers and retailers, and local economies. This More

A Qualitative Evaluation of the United States Department of Agriculture’s Food Insecurity Nutrition Incentive (FINI) Grant Program

This research describes findings from interviews conducted with grantees of multi-year community-based and large-scale projects funded by the FINI mechanism, as well as with stakeholders who could speak to FINI on a broader level. A total of 22 interviews were conducted with 19 organizations. Key elements addressed in this evaluation include: 1) Best practices and More

Survey of Afterschool Programs Suggests Most Offer Fruit and Vegetables Daily

This study estimated the frequency and quality of fruit and vegetables offered during snack in U.S. afterschool programs and examined program-level factors associated with offering them, including awareness and use of the National AfterSchool Association Healthy Eating and Physical Activity standards. Data was collected from 684 National AfterSchool Association members and their colleagues through an More

Examining the Feasibility of Healthy Minimum Stocking Standards for Small Food Stores

This study builds on the recommendations for healthy minimum stocking developed by an expert panel convened by Healthy Eating Research in 2015. It tests the feasibility of the standards and provides practical insight from retailers about implementation. Researchers collected qualitative and quantitative data from 57 small stores in four states (Arizona, Delaware, Minnesota, and North More

Eating School Meals Daily Is Associated with Healthier Dietary Intakes: The Healthy Communities Study

This study examines the association between frequency of participating in the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs and children’s dietary intakes. The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey Dietary Screener Questionnaire was used to measure dietary intake of fruit and vegetables, fiber, whole grains, dairy, calcium, total added sugar, sugar-sweetened beverages, and energy-dense foods. The More

Getting Children to Eat a Variety of Healthy Foods Starts Early in Life

Childhood is an especially important time to promote the acceptance of healthier foods given the oversaturation of unhealthy modern food environments, poor diet quality in young children, and the high prevalence of nutrition-related diseases in many nations. This issue brief is based on a narrative review, published in Obesity Reviews, on how children learn food preferences during More

Promoting Healthy Food Preferences From the Start: A Narrative Review of Food Preference Learning From the Prenatal Period Through Early Childhood

Childhood is an especially important time to promote the acceptance of healthier foods given the oversaturation of unhealthy modern food environments, poor diet quality in young children, and the high prevalence of nutrition-related diseases in many nations. This review relies on a search of the literature from 2007 to 2016 on how children learn food More

A Supermarket Double-Dollar Incentive Program Increases Purchases of Fresh Fruits and Vegetables Among Low Income Families With Children: The Healthy Double Study

This pilot study was conducted to determine whether a supermarket double-dollar fruit and vegetable (F&V) incentive increases F&V purchases among low-income families. The study was carried out in a supermarket in a low-income rural Maine community. The participants were low-income and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) supermarket customers. The participants received a same-day coupon at More