Improving Household Food Security Among Foreign-Born Residents of New York City Through Grocery Store Vouchers: A Pilot Program.

Abstract

Context: Many foreign-born residents of the United States are food insecure and are not eligible for government assistance programs that can improve food security, like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).

Objectives: This evaluation aimed to assess the implementation and impact of bi-weekly grocery store vouchers on household food security among New York City foreign-born residents at risk of food insecurity.

Design: We employed a pre-post-test evaluation design among program participants with a baseline assessment and a follow-up assessment 8 weeks later.

Setting: This program was implemented in East Harlem, a diverse, low-income neighborhood in New York City with a large immigrant population.

Participants: A total of 163 residents of East Harlem, New York City participated in the program.

Intervention: The paper-based food vouchers were distributed to study participants biweekly for 8 weeks, for a total of 4 distributions. Each voucher was valued at $10 and participants received either $100 or $150 in grocery store vouchers, bi-weekly, depending on household size. Participants completed evaluation surveys during each distribution period.

Main outcome measure: Household food insecurity was assessed using the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) 6-item short form Household Food Security Survey Module and the associated 6-item Food Security Scale developed by researchers at the National Center for Health Statistics.

Results: The average food security score among participants significantly improved from 4.4 at the start of the program to 2.6 by the end of the program ( P < .001), with a lower score indicating higher food security. Food security status also changed significantly, with a change from 97% participants considered low or very low food security at the start of the study, to 66% by the end of the study ( P < .001).

Conclusions: Grocery store vouchers may be effective at improving household food security among foreign-born residents who do not participate in SNAP.