Policy approaches to nutrition-focused food banking in industrialized countries: a scoping review.

OBJECTIVE: This review aims to synthesize the literature describing policy approaches to nutrition-focused food banking in industrialized countries, spanning the period 2000 to October 2021. BACKGROUND: The charitable food system provides food assistance to increasing numbers of people experiencing food insecurity in industrialized countries. Calls to improve the nutrition quality of foods provided by foods banks, pantries, and shelves have increased, yet little is known about the challenges faced when initiating policy in this setting. METHODS: A protocol based on the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses extension for Scoping Reviews Guidelines was developed and registered with Open Science Framework. Four electronic databases (MEDLINE [Ovid], Global Health, ProQuest, and Scopus) were searched for peer-reviewed articles published in English. A gray literature search was conducted using Google Advanced Search. RESULTS: Of 642 peer-reviewed articles screened, 15 were eligible for inclusion. In addition, 24 gray literature documents were included. These 39 papers were assessed against the Iron Triangle of Hunger Relief and the Campbell et al framework of organizational factors. Six themes were identified: (1) there is a moral imperative to take action to ensure the provision of appropriate and nutritious food for vulnerable clients; (2) nutrition policies are unlikely to be formalized; (3) the unpredictability of donated food is a barrier to providing healthy foods; (4) reliance on donations affects the sector's willingness to reduce the unhealthy inventory for fear of losing donors, and the challenges of managing donor relationships were emphasized; (5) organizational capacity (volunteer workforce, executive leadership support) must be considered; (6) the existing measure of success is a weight-based metric that does not support food banks' prioritizing of healthy foods. These, and other characteristics, were incorporated into an adapted framework. CONCLUSION: There is a need and opportunity for nutrition-focused food banking. A priority action area is the adoption of an outcome metric that is based on nutritional quality, to reorient the charitable food system.

Developing culturally appropriate food literacy resources for Aboriginal children with Foodbank WA's Superhero Foods®.

ISSUE ADDRESSED: In Australia, food sovereignty of traditional landowners has been marginalised by the globalisation of food systems and resulted in limited opportunities for children to experience familiar bush tucker foods as healthy choices, particularly in a school environment. Superhero Foods® themed teaching resources focus on the development of nutrition education materials that included traditional Aboriginal foods together with contemporary foods readily available in regional/remote communities. METHODS: Consultation with an Aboriginal expert and Aboriginal artist; local, regional/remote teachers and stakeholders informed the development of tailored resources including food cartoon characters, school lesson plans and a storybook. The latter was guided by a resource development model. Users of the resources were surveyed to ascertain the useability, alignment with the Australian Dietary Guidelines, cross-curricular learnings and cultural relevance. RESULTS: Respondents across regional/remote and urban locations completed a lesson plan and food character (clipart) survey (N = 51) and storybook survey (N = 14). Respondents advised the resources were relevant, enjoyable, engaging and culturally appropriate for all students regardless of Aboriginality. The resources provided learning opportunities for all children to enhance knowledge about Aboriginal culture and bush foods. Independent evaluation has further indicated the translation of messaging into student's knowledge and learning. CONCLUSIONS: Key enablers to the success of the resource included; free online access, the highly engaging nature of the resources and adaptability to be implemented across a number of Aboriginal language groups in WA. Ensuring visual representation of healthy choices was fundamental to reinforcing nutrition messaging. Superhero Foods resources are a positive and important inclusion in the health promotion toolbox for Aboriginal children. SO WHAT?: Superhero Foods are novel nutrition education resources depicting Aboriginal foods and Aboriginal children. These food literacy resources will engage children's understanding of Aboriginal culture, improve food literacy and strengthen equitable access for regional and remote communities.

Feasibility of a commercial smartphone application for dietary assessment in epidemiological research and comparison with 24-h dietary recalls.

BACKGROUND: Dietary assessment methods that can provide high quality data while limiting participant burden and resource requirements in epidemiological research are highly sought after and continue to evolve. The use of mobile phone technology in research has increased rapidly over the last decade and offers multiple advantages to the researcher over traditional data collection methods. This study tested the acceptability and relative validity of a commercial smart phone application (app) for use as an epidemiological dietary assessment tool, compared with a traditional dietary assessment method. METHODS: Study participants completed a 4-d food diary using a modified version of the Easy Diet Diary app and two 24-h dietary recalls during the same week, for comparison. At the end of data collection, participants completed a questionnaire on their experience with both methods. Average proportions of energy from macronutrients and fibre, iron, and calcium densities from the app and 24-h recalls were compared after log transformation, by calculating mean agreement, limits of agreement (LOA), and Pearson's correlations. The prevalence of dietary under-reporting was compared in each method using the Goldberg method. RESULTS: A total of 50 adults (82% women) provided data for analysis (mean age, 31 y; mean BMI, 22.4 kg/m2; 14% overweight or obese). Participant feedback showed high levels of acceptance of the app; 83% preferred using the app to completing 24-h dietary recalls. The average difference in energy intake (mean agreement) between methods was 268 kJ/d. For all intakes except alcohol, the average difference between methods was not significantly different from zero. Most limits of agreement were within an acceptable range. The prevalence of dietary misreporting was similar in both methods. CONCLUSIONS: These findings demonstrate good feasibility for applying this commercially-developed smartphone app in epidemiological research.