Improving Access to Fresh Food in Low-Income Areas

In a previous News Blog we looked at a paper that found an association between adherence to the Mediterranean diet (i.e. high consumption of fruit, vegetables, and legumes) and reduction in cardiovascular disease risk.[1] So, it can be argued, that for those in low-income areas there is a need to improve their access to fresh fruit and vegetables. But how best to achieve this? Breck and colleagues, on behalf of the CDC, looked at one possibility in a cross-sectional survey analysis.[2]

Previously, the city of New York had attempted to address the issue by granting new licenses for mobile fruit and vegetable carts in those neighbourhoods with poor availability of fresh food. However, only some of the carts (27%) had the capacity to accept the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits (a federal aid program to provide food-purchasing assistance) through use of Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) machines.

The authors conducted a survey analysis of 779 adults shopping at four carts in the Bronx neighbourhood of New York over several time periods. After controlling for cofounders, they found that those shoppers who were able to pay using their SNAP benefits purchased significantly (p<0.001) more fruit and vegetables (an average of 5.4 more cup equivalents), than those who were only able to pay with cash. While there are promising results from providing consumers with more ways to pay, there are challenges that could prevent widespread roll out of EBT, chiefly the high initial, monthly, and transaction fees that the cart vendors need to pay. Even when provided with financial support, less than one-third of carts were equipped with EBT machines at the time of this study. Although the study has a number of limitations that means causal inferences cannot be drawn, it can be seen as a possible avenue for future research.

— Peter Chilton, Research Fellow

Reference:

1. Chilton P. Diet and Socioeconomic Status. 18 August 2017.
2. Breck A, Kiszko K, Martinez O, Abrams C, Elbel B. Could EBT Machines Increase Fruit and Vegetable Purchases at New York City Green Carts? Prev Chronic Dis. 2017; 170104.