Healthy Food Environments in Food Pantries: Lessons Learned from a Sodium Reduction Intervention

In the United States, food pantries increasingly serve as regular food sources for low income households experiencing high rates of chronic disease, including hypertension. Sodium consumption is a modifiable risk factor for hypertension, so pantry customers would benefit from access to low-sodium foods. Pantry customers often experience difficulty acquiring healthy foods, however; little is known about pantry foods’ sodium content specifically. This study assesses the sodium content of pantry foods and lessons learned from an adaptable intervention to support pantries in adopting policies and environmental changes to make healthy, lower-sodium foods appealing and accessible. We conducted sodium assessments of food at 13 food pantries, tracked implementation of intervention strategies, and interviewed 10 pantry directors. More than half of food items in 11 categories met sodium standards for foods to be chosen “often”. Pantry directors reported valuing the intervention approach and implemented six of nine behavioral economics strategies, especially those targeting the visibility and convenience of foods, along with layout changes and expanded customer choice. One pantry adopted an agency-specific nutrition policy and 12 adopted a coalition-level policy. Results can inform intervention efforts to make available healthy options appealing and easy to select while also improving the customer experience in food pantries.

A Mobile Platform for Food Donation and Delivery System using AI and Machine Learning

Within the last year through the turmoil of the Covid-19 pandemic, an increasing number of families and individuals are experiencing food insecurity due to a loss of job, illnesses, or other financial struggles [4]. Many families in the Orange County area and abroad are turning to free food sources such as community food pantries or banks. Using specified surveys to food insecure families, we discovered a need for a solution to enhance the accessibility and usability of food pantries [5]. Therefore, we created a software application that uses artificial intelligence to locate specific items for users to request, and allow volunteers to see those requests and pick up the resources from food pantries, and deliver them directly to the homes of individuals. This paper shows the process in which this idea was created and how it was applied, along with the conduction of the qualitative evaluation of the approach. The results show that the software application allowed families and individuals to receive quality groceries at a much higher frequency, regardless of multiple constraints.

Improving Healthy Food Choices in Low-Income Settings in the United States Using Behavioral Economic-Based Adaptations to Choice Architecture

Low diet quality is a significant public health problem in the United States, especially among low-income populations. The food environment influences dietary choices. When applied to eating behavior, behavioral economics (BE) recognizes that decision biases instigated by a food environment saturated with unhealthy foods may lead people to purchase such foods, even when they possess the necessary information and skills to make healthy dietary choices. Choice architecture, a BE concept that involves modifying the appeal or availability of choices to “nudge” people toward a certain choice, retains freedom of choice but makes unhealthy options less convenient or visible. Choice architecture has been demonstrated to influence food choices in various settings, including supermarkets, convenience stores, and food pantries. These modifications are low-cost and feasible to implement, making them a viable strategy to help “nudge” patrons toward healthier choices in food establishments serving low-income populations, including food pantries and retailers accepting the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. This narrative review searched, appraised, and underscored the strengths and limitations of extant research studies that used choice architecture adaptations to influence food choices among low-income populations in the United States. Findings from studies in food pantry settings suggest the potential of BE strategies to improve the healthfulness of food choices and dietary intake in low-income populations. In food retail settings, research suggests that BE strategies increase sales of healthy foods, like fruits and vegetables. We identify new areas of research needed to determine if BE-based modifications in low-income settings have sustained impacts on diet quality.

The Food Bank and Food Pantries Help Food Insecure Participants Maintain Fruit and Vegetable Intake During COVID-19

Charitable food services, including food banks and pantries, support individual and households' food access, potentially maintaining food security and diet quality during emergencies. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the use of food banks and pantries has increased in the US. Here we examine perceptions of food banks and food pantries and their relationship to food security and fruit and vegetable (FV) intake during the first 6 months of the COVID-19 pandemic, using a statewide representative survey (n = 600) of residents of Vermont. The utilization of food pantries was more common among food insecure households and households with children. Among food insecure respondents, those who did not use a food pantry were significantly more likely to report consuming less FV during the pandemic. Further, we find respondents who are food insecure and using a food pantry report consuming more FV since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. We found that respondents who were both food insecure and reported not using a food pantry were significantly more likely to report both a reduction in fruit consumption (b = −0.58; p = 0.001) and a reduction in vegetable consumption (b = −0.415; p = 0.012). These results indicate that these services may support food access and one important dimension of diet quality (FV intake) for at-risk populations during emergencies.

Associations between Food Pantry Size and Distribution Method and Healthfulness of Foods Received by Clients in Baltimore City Food Pantries

This study aimed to evaluate the association of the overall nutritional quality and the weight share of specific types of foods received by food pantry clients with food pantry size and distribution method. Data on healthy food weights using the gross weight share (GWS) of select foods and the validated Food Assortment Score Tool (FAST) were collected from 75 food pantry clients in Baltimore, Maryland. The average FAST score across the study population was 63.0 (SD: 10.4). Overall, no statistically significant differences in average FAST scores by pantry size and distribution method were found. However, among client-choice pantries, clients of small pantries had higher scores (p < 0.05) while among medium pantries, clients of traditional pantries had higher scores (p < 0.01). Subgroup analysis of GWS was stratified by pantry size and distribution methods. Findings suggested multi-level, multi-component interventions combining environmental strategies are needed to enhance the healthfulness of foods received by clients. Our analysis provided data to consider further refinements of pantry interventions and planning of more rigorous research on factors influencing the effectiveness of pantry interventions.