The complexities of selling fruits and vegetables in remote Navajo Nation retail outlets: perspectives from owners and managers of small stores.

OBJECTIVE: Navajo Nation residents experience extreme rates of poverty, food insecurity and diet-related diseases. While many residents travel far to shop at grocery stores, there are small stores closer to home that could provide more healthy options, like fruits and vegetables (F&V). Little is known from the perspective of store owners and managers regarding the barriers and facilitators to offering F&V; the present study contributes to filling that gap. DESIGN: Data were collected through structured interviews from a sampling frame of all store owners or managers in the setting (n 29). SETTING: Small stores in Navajo Nation, New Mexico, USA. Navajo Nation is predominantly rural and the largest federally recognized Native American tribe in the USA. PARTICIPANTS: Sixteen managers and six owners at twenty-two stores. RESULTS: When asked about the types of foods that were most commonly purchased at their stores, most participants reported snacks and drinks (82 and 68 %, respectively). Many participants reported they would like to offer more fresh F&V. However, barriers included varying perceived customer demand, limited F&V choices from distributors and (for some managers) limited authority over product selection. CONCLUSIONS: Findings contribute to the discussion on engaging store owners and managers in providing quality, healthy foods close to home in low-income, rural regions.

Healthy Stores Initiative Associated with Produce Purchasing on Navajo Nation.

BACKGROUND: American Indians and Alaska Natives experience diet-related health disparities compared with non-Hispanic whites. Navajo Nation's colonial history and remote setting present unique challenges for healthy food access. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to understand the impact of the Healthy Navajo Stores Initiative (HNSI) on fruit and vegetable purchasing on Navajo Nation. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional survey of 692 customers shopping at 28 convenience stores, trading posts, and grocery stores on Navajo Nation. Individual- and household-level sociodemographic data and food purchasing behaviors were collected. Descriptive and bivariate analyses for customers' individual- and household-level characteristics were conducted using chi-squared tests. The impact of individual-, household-, and store-level factors on fruit and vegetable purchasing was assessed using multiple logistic regression modeling. RESULTS: Store participation in the HNSI was significantly associated with customers' purchase of produce. Customers experienced 150% higher odds of purchasing produce if they shopped in participating stores, compared with nonparticipating stores (P < 0.001). Store type was strongly associated with customers' purchase of fruits or vegetables. Customers shopping at a grocery store had 520% higher odds of purchasing produce than did customers shopping at convenience stores (P < 0.001). Customers shopping at trading posts had 120% higher odds of purchasing fruits or vegetables than did customers shopping at convenience stores (P = 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Our findings reveal increased produce purchasing at stores participating in the HNSI. Customers were significantly more likely to purchase fruits or vegetables in stores enrolled in a healthy store intervention than in nonenrolled stores, after controlling for quantity of produce stocked and store type. Customers shopping in grocery stores and trading posts were significantly more likely to purchase produce than customers shopping in convenience stores. These findings have implications for food access in rural tribal communities.

Arguments Used in Public Comments to Support or Oppose the US Department of Agriculture's Minimum Stocking Requirements: A Content Analysis.

BACKGROUND: In 2016, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA)'s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Retailer Rule proposed several changes for SNAP-authorized retailers, including: requiring retailers to have at least 85% of their food sales come from items that are not cooked or heated on site before or after purchase; requiring stores to stock seven varieties of qualifying foods from four staple food groups; requiring stores to carry perishable foods in three of the four staple groups; requiring stores to carry six units of qualifying foods at all times (depth of stock); disqualifying multiple ingredient foods and accessory foods from counting toward depth of stock requirements. OBJECTIVES: To better understand arguments used to support or oppose the USDA's proposed rule that all SNAP-authorized retailers carry more nutritious foods. DESIGN: We conducted a qualitative content analysis of a random sample of public comments posted to the US Federal Register (a publicly available database) in response to the USDA's proposed rule. PARTICIPANTS/SETTING: A random sample of 20% of all public comments submitted by individuals and organizations to the US Federal Register were analyzed (n=303) for this study. RESULTS: Three main themes were discussed: 1) arguments used in opposition to the rule; 2) arguments used in support of the rule; and 3) facilitators to assist stores in implementing the rule. Some of the subthemes included focusing on definitions used in the rule, reduced food access caused by stores leaving the SNAP program, lack of space and equipment for healthy foods, and the potential for increasing healthy food access. CONCLUSIONS: Nutrition and dietetics practitioners may be tasked with working with stores to implement healthy changes. Nutrition and dietetics practitioners must understand the role that the USDA has in food policy. In addition, understanding how federal food policy influences the environments in which dietetics professionals' clients are making food choices is important.

Healthful Nutrition of Foods in Navajo Nation Stores: Availability and Pricing.

PURPOSE: Low availability and affordability of healthier foods in food stores on the Navajo Nation (NN) may be a community-level risk factor for the high prevalence of obesity among the Navajo people. This study assessed the availability and pricing of foods and beverages in supermarkets and convenience stores throughout the NN. DESIGN: Descriptive study design using the Nutrition Environment Measurement Survey in Stores audit tool. SETTING: Supermarkets (n = 13) and convenience stores (n = 50) on NN and border-town supermarkets (n = 9). SUBJECTS: Not applicable. MEASURES: Availability and pricing of healthy and less-healthy foods. ANALYSIS: Descriptive and χ(2) analyses. RESULTS: Navajo convenience stores offered fewer healthier food options compared to Navajo supermarkets. In Navajo convenience stores, 100% whole grain products, reduced-fat cheese, lean meats, reduced-fat chips, and fat-free or light hot dogs were available in fewer stores than their corresponding less-healthy versions (all with p < .05). In both Navajo supermarkets and convenience stores, 100% whole wheat bread, lean cold cuts, and reduced-fat cheese were all more expensive per unit than their corresponding less-healthy versions (all with p < .05). CONCLUSIONS: According to this study, healthier foods are not as readily available in Navajo convenience stores as they are in Navajo supermarkets. Improving access to and affordability of healthier foods in reservation stores of all sizes may support healthy eating among Navajo residents.

Nutrition-related policy and environmental strategies to prevent obesity in rural communities: a systematic review of the literature, 2002-2013.

INTRODUCTION: Residents of rural communities in the United States are at higher risk for obesity than their urban and suburban counterparts. Policy and environmental-change strategies supporting healthier dietary intake can prevent obesity and promote health equity. Evidence in support of these strategies is based largely on urban and suburban studies; little is known about use of these strategies in rural communities. The purpose of this review was to synthesize available evidence on the adaptation, implementation, and effectiveness of policy and environmental obesity-prevention strategies in rural settings. METHODS: The review was guided by a list of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Recommended Community Strategies and Measurements to Prevent Obesity in the United States, commonly known as the "COCOMO" strategies. We searched PubMed, Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature, Public Affairs Information Service, and Cochrane databases for articles published from 2002 through 2013 that reported findings from research on nutrition-related policy and environmental strategies in rural communities in the United States and Canada. Two researchers independently abstracted data from each article, and resolved discrepancies by consensus. RESULTS: Of the 663 articles retrieved, 33 met inclusion criteria. The interventions most commonly focused on increasing access to more nutritious foods and beverages or decreasing access to less nutritious options. Rural adaptations included accommodating distance to food sources, tailoring to local food cultures, and building community partnerships. CONCLUSIONS: Findings from this literature review provide guidance on adapting and implementing policy and environmental strategies in rural communities.

Engineering soluble proteins for structural genomics.

Structural genomics has the ambitious goal of delivering three-dimensional structural information on a genome-wide scale. Yet only a small fraction of natural proteins are suitable for structure determination because of bottlenecks such as poor expression, aggregation, and misfolding of proteins, and difficulties in solubilization and crystallization. We propose to overcome these bottlenecks by producing soluble, highly expressed proteins that are derived from and closely related to their natural homologs. Here we demonstrate the utility of this approach by using a green fluorescent protein (GFP) folding reporter assay to evolve an enzymatically active, soluble variant of a hyperthermophilic protein that is normally insoluble when expressed in Escherichia coli, and determining its structure by X-ray crystallography. Analysis of the structure provides insight into the substrate specificity of the enzyme and the improved solubility of the variant.