Samantha Sam-Chen joined the Nutrition Policy Institute at the University of California, Agriculture and Natural Resources on June 15, 2023 as a new project policy analyst. She began her work at NPI as a graduate student and received her master's in public health with a concentration in public health nutrition from the UC Berkeley School of Public Health. Her primary research interests include food and nutrition insecurity, evaluating food and nutrition programs, and early childhood nutrition interventions. Through her work, Samantha hopes to contribute to research that will result in policies that eliminate nutrition-related health disparities. She has over a decade of experience working with California school districts, primarily in rural and predominantly Latino communities. At NPI she works on several projects, such as evaluating the California Nutrition Incentive Program and California's Universal Meals Program.
A new research brief developed by the Nutrition Policy Institute details findings from an evaluation of the California Nutrition Incentive Program, a program that provides CalFresh shoppers with a dollar-for-dollar match when purchasing California-grown produce at participating farmers markets and other retail outlets. In this evaluation, NPI researchers conducted surveys and interviews with a convenience sample of CalFresh shoppers and food store managers. Overall, CalFresh shoppers reported overwhelmingly positive experiences using CNIP and store managers also found the program to be beneficial. While the results showed that CNIP utilization did not have statistically significant impacts on quantitative measures of shoppers' produce intake or food security, shoppers did report that CNIP influenced the kinds of fruits and vegetables they bought and also attributed being able to buy more fruits and vegetables to this program. CalFresh shoppers wanted CNIP to continue and supported it expanding to other retail outlets.
A new research brief developed by the Nutrition Policy Institute details findings from an evaluation of the California Nutrition Incentive Program, a program that provides CalFresh shoppers with a dollar-for-dollar match when purchasing California-grown produce at participating farmers markets and other retail outlets. In this evaluation, NPI researchers conducted surveys and interviews with a convenience sample of CalFresh shoppers and food store managers. Overall, CalFresh shoppers reported overwhelmingly positive experiences using CNIP and store managers also found the program to be beneficial. While the results showed that CNIP utilization did not have statistically significant impacts on quantitative measures of shoppers' produce intake or food security, shoppers did report that CNIP influenced the kinds of fruits and vegetables they bought and also attributed being able to buy more fruits and vegetables to this program. CalFresh shoppers wanted CNIP to continue and supported it expanding to other retail outlets.
The California Nutrition Incentive Program provides CalFresh—known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program nationally—participants monetary incentives for the purchase of California grown fruits and vegetables at Certified Farmers Markets and small businesses. Nutrition Policy Institute was recently awarded a contract to determine how CNIP benefits can be equitably distributed in communities where participating retailers operate and to understand the impact of CNIP participation on participants' produce purchases, produce intake, and food and nutrition security. The 27-month project started on January 1, 2023, and includes NPI's Wendi Gosliner as Principal Investigator, Sridharshi Hewawitharana as project manager, and Samantha Sam-Chen as data collection manager. The team has conducted previous evaluations of CNIP, showing its promising associations with decreased participant food insecurity as well as highlighting participants' fondness and appreciation for the program and their perceptions that it increases the quantity and variety of California-grown fruits and vegetables they consume. This project is funded by a contract with the California Department of Food and Agriculture.
- Author: Katherine Lanca
- Editor: Danielle L. Lee
- Editor: Wendi Gosliner
- Editor: Samantha Sam-Chen
In April 2023, CalFresh (California's version of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) benefits were reduced for over 3 million program participants due to the ending of COVID emergency increases. Nutrition Policy Institute researchers Wendi Gosliner and Samantha Sam-Chen were featured in a University of California, Agriculture and Natural Resources article in English and Spanish and a video interview to recognize inadequacies of the benefit amount. Gosliner points out that many CalFresh participants are eligible for other safety net programs, some of which they may not be accessing. “With the high cost of living, ongoing inflation and extreme income and wealth disparities, people are being forced to explore every possible avenue just to feed themselves and their families,” she said. In the video interview, Sam-Chen encourages CalFresh participants to utilize other nutrition assistance programs designed to supplement benefit amounts, specifically California's Market Match Program. The Market Match Program is administered at farmers markets and gives CalFresh shoppers a dollar-for-dollar match, from $10 to $15 dollars, to buy local fruits and vegetables. Sam-Chen, whose research evaluates MarketMatch, explained that “..con ese dinero adicional, pueden comprar más frutas y verduras,” in English, “...with that additional money, they [participants] can purchase more fruits and vegetables.” Both voices from the Nutrition Policy Institute expressed concerns about families losing critical funds to feed their families at this time, and noted that CalFresh participants may be eligible for other supporting programs to help them feed their families in the context of the benefit cuts. The article titled “UC ANR experts offer counsel as CalFresh benefits shrink, participants face hunger” was written by Mike Hsu, UC ANR senior public information representative. It was also featured as a FarmProgress news article titled “UC offers counsel as CalFresh benefits shrink” on April 20, 2023.