Measuring the Effects of a Demonstration to Reduce Childhood Food Insecurity: A Randomized Controlled Trial of the Nevada Healthy, Hunger Free Kids Project.

BACKGROUND: To reduce childhood hunger, the US Department of Agriculture funded a set of demonstration projects, including the Nevada Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids (HHFK) project. OBJECTIVE: The study objective was to test whether the Nevada HHFK project reduced child food insecurity (FI-C) among low-income households with young children. DESIGN: Households were randomly assigned to treatment and control groups, with outcomes measured using household surveys and administrative data. Survey data were collected at baseline (n=3,088) and follow-up (n=2,074) 8 to 12 months into the project. PARTICIPANTS/SETTING: Eligible households in Las Vegas, NV, had children under age 5 years, received Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, and had incomes below 75% of the federal poverty level. INTERVENTION: Between June 2016 and May 2017, treatment households on SNAP received an additional $40 in monthly SNAP benefits per child under age 5 years. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Key outcomes included FI-C (primary), food security among adults and households, and food expenditures (secondary). STATISTICAL ANALYSES PERFORMED: Differences between the treatment and control groups were estimated by a logistic regression model and controlling for baseline characteristics. Analyses were also performed on socioeconomic subgroups. RESULTS: The Nevada HHFK project did not reduce FI-C (treatment=31.2%, control=30.6%; P=0.620), very low food security among children (P=0.915), or food insecurity among adults (P=0.925). The project increased households' monthly food expenditures (including SNAP and out-of-pocket food purchases) by $23 (P<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: A demonstration project to reduce FI-C by increasing SNAP benefits to Las Vegas households with young children and very low income did not reduce FI-C or other food-insecurity measures. This finding runs counter to prior research showing that SNAP and similar forms of food assistance have reduced food insecurity. This project was implemented during a period of substantial economic growth in Las Vegas. Future research should explore the role of the economic context, children's ages, and household income in determining how increases in SNAP benefits affect food insecurity. CLINICALTRIALS. GOV IDENTIFIER: NCT04253743 (http://www.clinicaltrials.gov) FUNDING/SUPPORT: This article is published as part of a supplement supported by the US Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service.

A Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial of a Home-Delivered Food Box on Food Security in Chickasaw Nation.

BACKGROUND: The 2010 Child Nutrition reauthorization called for the independent evaluation of innovative strategies to reduce the risk of childhood hunger or improve the food security status of households with children. OBJECTIVE: The research question was whether the Packed Promise intervention reduces child food insecurity (FI-C) among low-income households with children. DESIGN: This study was a cluster randomized controlled trial of 40 school districts and 4,750 eligible, consented households within treatment and control schools. PARTICIPANTS/SETTING: Data were collected at baseline (n = 2,859) and 2 follow-ups (n = 2,852; n = 2,790) from households with children eligible for free school meals in participating schools in 12 rural counties within the Chickasaw Nation territory in south central Oklahoma in 2016 to 2018. INTERVENTION: Each month of the 25-month intervention, for each eligible child, enrolled households could choose from 5 types of food boxes that contained shelf-stable, nutritious foods ($38 food value) and a $15 check for purchasing fruits and vegetables. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The primary outcome was FI-C. Other outcomes included household and adult food security, very low food security among children, and food expenditures. STATISTICAL ANALYSES PERFORMED: Differences between the treatment and control groups were estimated by a regression model controlling for baseline characteristics. RESULTS: The Packed Promise project did not significantly reduce FI-C at 12 months (29.3% prevalence in the treatment group compared with 30.1% in the control group; P = 0.123) or at 18 months (28.2% vs 28.7%; P = 0.276), but reduced food insecurity for adults by 3 percentage points at 12 months (P = 0.002) but not at 18 months (P = 0.354). The intervention led to a $27 and a $16 decline in median household monthly out-of-pocket food expenditures at 12 and 18 months, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: An innovative intervention successfully delivered nutritious food boxes to low-income households with children in rural Oklahoma, but did not significantly reduce FI-C. Improving economic conditions in the demonstration area and participation in other nutrition assistance programs among treatment and control groups might explain the lack of impact.ClinicalTrials.gov ID: NCT04316819 (http://www.clinicaltrials.gov). FUNDING/SUPPORT: This article is published as part of a supplement supported by the US Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service.

A Randomized Controlled Trial Measuring Effects of Extra Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Benefits on Child Food Security in Low-Income Families in Rural Kentucky.

BACKGROUND: To reduce childhood hunger, the US Department of Agriculture funded several innovative demonstration projects, including the Kentucky Ticket to Healthy Food project. OBJECTIVE: The study tested the hypothesis that Ticket to Healthy Food would reduce child food insecurity (FI-C) among rural, low-income households. DESIGN: The study used a randomized controlled trial in which households were randomly assigned to treatment and control groups. Outcomes were measured using household surveys and administrative data. Survey data were collected at baseline (n=2,202) and follow-up (n=1,639) 8 to 11 months into the project. PARTICIPANTS/SETTING: Households in 17 counties in southeastern Kentucky that had at least 1 child younger than 18 years and received a Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefit amount less than the maximum at baseline. INTERVENTION: Between January 2017 and March 2018, treatment households on SNAP received additional monthly benefits ranging from $1 to $122 based on distance to grocery store and earned income. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Key outcomes included FI-C (primary), food insecurity among adults and households, and food expenditures (secondary). STATISTICAL ANALYSES PERFORMED: Logistic and linear regression models were used to estimate differences between the treatment and control groups, controlling for baseline characteristics. Socioeconomic subgroups were also analyzed. RESULTS: The Kentucky Ticket to Healthy Food project did not reduce the primary outcome, FI-C (treatment=37.1%, control=35.2%; P=0.812), or secondary outcomes of very low food security among children (treatment=3.7%, control=4.4%; P=0.204) or food insecurity among adults (treatment=53.9%, control=53.0%; P=0.654). The project increased households' monthly food spending by $20 (P=0.030) and led more households to report that monthly benefits lasted at least 3 weeks (treatment=65%, control=56%; P=0.009). CONCLUSION: A demonstration project to reduce FI-C by raising SNAP benefits for Kentucky households with children did not reduce FI-C or other food insecurity measures. Future research should explore the effect of different increases in SNAP benefits and collect repeated measures of FI-C to assess whether intervention effects change over time. FUNDING/SUPPORT: This article is published as part of a supplement supported by the US Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service.