This study will evaluate an intervention delivered by community partners, the “Veggie Van” mobile market, a van service that sells weekly boxes of reduced-cost, fresh, North Carolina-grown fruits and vegetables and provides nutrition education, taste testing, and cooking demonstrations. Specific aims of the study are to: 1) determine the impact of the Veggie Van on children’s diets by measuring parent-reported child intake of fruits, vegetables, and added sugars at home via multi-pass 24-hour dietary recalls as well as parent reported child attitudes toward consuming fresh fruits and vegetables; 2) analyze the mechanisms by which the Veggie Van affects children’s diet using Veggie Van purchasing data and grocery store receipts for each child’s household; and 3) assess parents’ self-reported home food offerings and preparation practices and their self-efficacy regarding preparing and serving fresh fruits and vegetables. Researchers will use a randomized controlled trial design with 12 sites (e.g., child-care centers, lower-income housing, churches) located in lower-income or low food access areas (6 intervention, 6 control). Data will be collected from approximately 180 parents with a child ages 3-10 years (15 at each site).
Start Date: January 2013
ID #: 70602
Principal Investigator: Lucia Leone, PhD
Organization: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Funding Round: New Connections Round 6
Age Groups: Adults and Families, Elementary-age children (grades K to 5), Preschool-age children (ages 3 to 5)
Race/Ethnicity: African American or Black, Latino(a) or Hispanic, Multi-racial/ethnic
Keywords: Body mass index (BMI), Community setting, Fruits and vegetables, Home, Mobile food vending
Focus Areas: Food Access, Food Retail, Pricing & Economics
Resource Type: Grant Summary
State: North Carolina
Related Research
September 2025
Food Insecurity-Related Stigma Among Adults in the United States: A Scoping Review
This review aimed to characterize individual- and structural-level stigma associated with government (ie, SNAP, WIC) and emergency food program (ie, food banks, pantries, cupboards, soup kitchens) utilization in the US. 5 databases (PubMed, PsychINFO, Web of Science, CINAHL, Sociological Abstracts) were searched in June 2024. The review included peer-reviewed articles (January 2004 – June 2024), MoreAugust 2025
Resources to Improve Implementation of the Healthy Eating Research (HER) Nutrition Guidelines for the Charitable Food System
This guide contains training materials, resources, tips, and examples of practices to help food banks improve the implementation of Healthy Eating Research (HER) Nutrition Guidelines for the Charitable Food System. To create this guide, the research team interviewed people working in food banks across the country to learn how they approach ranking foods using the MoreAugust 2025