A new research brief from the Nutrition Policy Institute, CACFP Roundtable, and University of California, Berkeley highlights the difficulties faced by sponsors of the federal Child and Adult Care Food Program, commonly known as CACFP. CACFP provides nutritious meals to nearly 625,000 children attending participating family childcare homes nationally who are predominantly from families with lower income. Sponsoring organizations serve an integral role in supporting CACFP participation by family childcare homes, yet declining sponsor participation threatens equitable access to this program. Results from interviews with 15 sponsors in California in 2023-2024 identified key challenges. Sponsors reported CACFP administrative reimbursements are inadequate. Limited sponsor reimbursements also hinder hiring and retaining staff, making program oversight challenging. In addition, sponsors reported that monitoring visits, which resumed in-person post-pandemic, are costly, time-intensive, and raise staff safety concerns. This study underscores the need for increased sponsor funding and virtual monitoring options, to strengthen CACFP. Read the full brief for more insights.

School meals in the U.S. support 30 million students daily, improving nutrition, academic outcomes, and food security, particularly for disadvantaged households. A recent study led by Juliana Cohen at Merrimack College and Harvard University, in collaboration with the Nutrition Policy Institute and other researchers, surveyed 403 Massachusetts parents of varying income levels during the 2022-2023 school year to understand their perception of a statewide universal free school meals policy. Results showed that 75% of parents, regardless of income, supported the policy and recognized its many benefits, including reduced stress, and saving time and money. Parents also expressed concerns that ending the policy would have negative impacts, including: 1) financial strain on households of all income levels; 2) less food security for families who were eligible for federally funded free or reduced-price meals as well as for students from families who were financially vulnerable even though they would not typically qualify for free or reduced-price meals; and 3) reduced school meal participation for the most financially vulnerable students. Researchers recommend considering expanding universal free school meal policies to additional states and at the national level, as such policies improve access to nutrition across all income groups and promote equity, especially in areas of higher living costs. This study was conducted by Christina Hecht, Kenneth Hecht, Dania Orta-Aleman, Lorrene Ritchie, Monica Zuercher, and Wendi Gosliner with the Nutrition Policy Institute; Juliana Cohen with Merrimack College and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health; Leah Chapman with Merrimack College; Deborah Olarte with New York University; Leran Minc with Project Bread; Punam Ohri-Vachaspati with Arizona State University; Anisha Patel with Stanford University School of Medicine; and Michele Polacsek with the University of New England.

Nutrition Policy Institute, in collaboration with the National WIC Association and Pepperdine University, released two policy briefs encouraging modernization efforts for the federal Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children, commonly known as WIC. The briefs recommend implementing expanded access to online purchasing options and farmers market purchases for WIC participants and improving WIC smartphone applications to better align their information with vendor systems to improve users' ability to identify and purchase WIC-approved items efficiently. These recommendations were encouraged to reduce the stigma and difficulties participants experience while shopping for WIC foods and to increase full benefit redemption. Evidence to support these recommendations came from a 2023 survey of over 38,000 WIC participants from 19 states, one Indian Tribal Organization, and one US territory and focus groups held in 2024 with 44 WIC participants in 16 states and one Indian Tribal Organization. This project was funded by the National WIC Association from a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

CalFresh Healthy Living aims to improve the health and wellbeing of Californians through interventions that promote healthy eating and active living. Interventions include evidence-based nutrition and physical activity education programs delivered to adults in community settings, like congregate meal sites and parks and recreation facilities. In federal fiscal year 2024, the Nutrition Policy Institute, in partnership with local health departments, evaluated series-based education programs. To measure program outcomes, participants self-reported their dietary and physical behaviors on a survey before and after the program. An infographic developed by the Nutrition Policy Institute describes these adult participants and summarizes changes in their behaviors. The infographic demonstrates a number of behavior changes, including:

• Vegetable intake increased by 0.5 cups per day
• Fruit intake increased by 0.5 cups per day
• Drinking soda 'often or everyday' decreased by 58%
• The number of participants meeting the recommendation of 2+ days of muscle strengthening activity/week increased by 47%

Learn more about NPI's work to evaluate CalFresh Healthy Living.