Nutrition Policy Institute collaborated with Impact Justice, ChangeLab Solutions and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to launch a first-in-the-nation ‘Farm to Corrections' Harvest of the Month pilot project bringing California-grown produce to incarcerated populations in California in three prisons. Several California state policies support the project, including AB-822 which provides price incentives for state agencies to purchase California-grown produce and AB-778 which requires that 60% of state agency's produce is purchased from within the state. The project, led by NPI's Wendi Gosliner, Ron Strochlic and Carolyn Chelius, produced a report summarizing the opportunities and challenges in bringing more California-grown produce to the state's prison system, a second report of promising farm-to-corrections practices from across the United States, as well as several trauma-informed nutrition education workshops across the state for formerly incarcerated individuals. The project was featured in several media outlets, including an article by FarmProgress on October 6, 2023, “'Farm to corrections' project feeds prisoners” and the My Ag Life podcast episode on October 6, 2023, 'Farm to Corrections' Project Benefits Incarcerated Individuals, Growers. The podcast recording featuring Carolyn's interview begins at 10:23. The article was also featured in the University of California, Agriculture and Natural Resources News & Events on September 28, 2023, “‘Farm to corrections' project provides fresh produce to people in prison, boosts California growers.”
Complementary feeding refers to the introduction of foods other than human milk or formula to a child's diet. In response to a request from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine's Health and Medicine Division convened the Committee on Complementary Feeding Interventions for Infants and Young Children under Age 2 to conduct a consensus study scoping review of peer-reviewed literature and other publicly available information on interventions addressing complementary feeding. The interventions studied took place in the US and other high-income country health care systems; early care and education settings; university cooperative extension programs; the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC); home visiting programs; and other settings. The resulting consensus study report, Complementary Feeding Interventions for Infants and Young Children under Age 2: Scoping of Promising Interventions to Implement at the Community or State Level (2023), summarizes evidence and provides information on interventions that could be scaled up or implemented at a community or state level. Lorrene Ritchie of the Nutrition Policy Institute at the University of California, Agriculture and Natural Resources, was a committee member and contributed to the development of the report.
- Author: Carolyn Chelius
- Editor: Wendi Gosliner
- Editor: Danielle L. Lee
Lack of refrigeration is reported as a leading barrier to corner stores stocking fresh fruits and vegetables. In 2018, the California legislature funded the Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) to offer a Healthy Refrigeration Grant Program, providing grants to corner stores in food resource-poor neighborhoods to purchase refrigeration units to increase access to California-grown fruits and vegetables. A new report from NPI shows storeowners that participated in the program perceived increases in their store's ability to sell produce after installing the CDFA refrigerator. Storeowners reported the CDFA refrigerator allowed them to waste less produce and increase the variety and freshness of produce they sell. Of the 51 storeowners that participated in the study, only 14% reported “lack of refrigeration” as a barrier to stocking fresh fruits and vegetables after participating in the program, compared to 51% before participating in the program. The findings are also summarized in a two-page policy brief. Report and brief authors include Carolyn Chelius and Wendi Gosliner from the UC Nutrition Policy Institute, as well as former NPI intern Caroline Long and volunteer Taylor Baisey from UC Berkeley. The work was funded by CDFA.
The USDA Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) published the “Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Infant and Toddler Feeding Practices Study-2: Fifth Year Report”. The WIC Infant and Toddler Feeding Practices Study-2 (WIC ITFPS-2), also known as the “Feeding My Baby” Study, is the only national study to capture data on caregivers and their children over the first 5 years of the child's life after enrollment in WIC, regardless of their continued participation in the program. The study also conducts additional follow-ups with children at ages 6 and 9. There were several key findings from the study. Families who remain in WIC during children's fifth year of life report continued participation because of the food they receive, the education and information they receive, and that WIC staff listen to their thoughts about their child's health. Children who consistently participate in WIC through their fifth year of life have better overall diet quality, on average, than children who only participated in their second and third years of life. When compared to children not receiving WIC or SNAP, children participating in WIC but not SNAP at age 54 months are more likely to meet recommendations for limiting added sugar intake. The study was conducted by Christine Borger, Thea Zimmerman, Jill DeMatteis, and Bibi Gollapudi, and Laurie May from Westat, Shannon Whaley from Public Health Foundation Enterprises-WIC, Lorrene Ritchie from the University of California, Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Nutrition Policy Institute, and Lauren Au from UC Davis. The study was conducted under Contract AG-3198-B-11-0020, Order Number AG-3198-K-15-0050, supported by U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service.
- Author: Danielle L. Lee
- Editor: Lorrene Ritchie
A recent National WIC Association report, Multi-State WIC Participant Satisfaction Survey: Cash Value Benefit Increase During COVID, shows an increase in child fruit and vegetable consumption among participants in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) after the WIC Cash Value Benefit (CVB) for fruits and vegetables was enhanced through the American Rescue Plan Act in summer 2021. The report analyzes over 10,000 responses from WIC participants across 5 State WIC Agencies–Connecticut, Inter Tribal Council of Arizona, Nevada, New Hampshire, and New Mexico–in 2021. Researchers found that when the monthly CVB for children was increased from $9 to $35, children's total daily fruit and vegetable intake increased by approximately 1/3 cup. The study also showed that WIC participants prefer a CVB amount higher than $9 and closer to $35 per month to cover the fruit and vegetable needs of their child. The study was conducted by researchers at the UC Nutrition Policy Institute including Lorrene Ritchie, Danielle Lee, and Celeste Felix, in partnership with private consultant Linnea Sallack, Georgia Machell and Christina Chauvenet from the National WIC Association, and Shannon Whaley from Public Health Foundation Enterprise-WIC. The study was funded by the David and Lucille Packard Foundation, the From Now On Fund, the National WIC Association, and the University of California, Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources.