Food Access & Food Insecurity

Grocery bags of food sit atop a table outside.
Nutrition Policy Institute: Article

November 2025 SNAP Benefit Disruption: Findings from a Rapid-Response Observational Study of Charitable Food Programs in California

December 11, 2025
By Wendi Gosliner, Caitlin D French, Danielle Lee, Samantha Sam-Chen, Ron Strochlic, Miranda W Brown, Monica D Zuercher, Karina Diaz Rios, Alexa Erickson, Amira R Resnick, Molly Shea, Lorrene D Ritchie, Reka Vasicsek, Hannah R Thompson
Report • December 2025 • Download PDF (1.2 MB)Background During a U.S. government shutdown in October-November of 2025, the federal government failed to fund Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits on time for the first time in the program’s history. As a result, more than 40 million…
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New policy brief explores safety net program participation, diet quality, and weight among disadvantaged children

December 11, 2025
By Brianna Aguayo Villalon, Danielle Lee, Lorrene D Ritchie
A new policy brief highlighting a recent study shows how federal safety net programs such as Medicaid, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and especially the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, also known as WIC, play a critical role in improving diet…
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Research Briefs

Nutrition Policy Institute's research briefs are short, non-technical summaries of a study's key findings—designed to make complex research accessible to broader audiences like policymakers, practitioners, or the public—translating evidence into real-world application through plain language, bullet points,…
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Nutrition Policy Institute News: Article

Family childcare home providers recommend higher reimbursements from the Child and Adult Care Food Program to support healthier foods for young children

December 1, 2025
By Danielle Lee, Kassandra A Bacon, Lorrene D Ritchie
The Child and Adult Care Food Program, or CACFP, is the largest federal nutrition program for childcare, providing nutritious foods and beverages to over 4.5 million children nationally. Nutrition Policy Institute researchers interviewed family childcare home provider CACFP participants, their sponsors and…
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Nutrition Policy Institute News: Article

Study highlights barriers to accessing poverty alleviation benefits through the Earned Income Tax Credit

November 25, 2025
By Danielle Lee, Wendi Gosliner
The Earned Income Tax Credit, or EITC, is the largest U.S. poverty alleviation program for families with children—providing over $60 billion annually in tax refunds to over 25 million families. This tax refund can improve low-income families' health by increasing resources for food and housing, however, over…
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Nutrition Policy Institute News: Article

New study finds deimplementing Universal Free School Meals adversely affects students and school food authorities

November 17, 2025
By Brianna Aguayo Villalon, Danielle Lee, Monica D Zuercher, Wendi Gosliner
The National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program play a crucial role in ensuring access to nutritious meals for children in the US. During the COVID-19 pandemic, federal waivers allowed all schools to offer Universal Free School Meals (UFSM) from 2020 to 2022, but when these waivers expired,…
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A tray of school food including fresh fruits, vegetables, milk and an entree.
Nutrition Policy Institute: Article

Universal School Meals - A Powerful Strategy to Combat Food Insecurity

November 6, 2025
By Dania Orta-Aleman, Christina E Hecht, Kenneth Hecht, Caitlin D French, Monica D Zuercher, Samantha Sam-Chen, Hannah R Thompson, Lorrene D Ritchie, Wendi Gosliner
Research Brief • November 2025 • Download PDF (229 KB)Means-tested approaches to school meals leave hungry kids unserved. School Meals for All programs ensure no child falls through the cracks.Food Insecurity in CaliforniaNearly 1 in 6 CA households with children—over 660,000 households—are food insecure,…
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Nutrition Policy Institute News: Article

NPI job opening: Assistant Project Scientist

November 4, 2025
By Danielle Lee
The Nutrition Policy Institute is seeking to hire a post-doctoral researcher as an Assistant Project Scientist to work on studies related to youth cardiometabolic health, school physical activity and nutrition programs (recess, PE, school meals), and nutrition and physical activity policy implementation…
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Nutrition Policy Institute News: Article

Nutrition Policy Institute researchers to present at the American Public Health Association’s 2025 Annual Meeting and Expo

October 30, 2025
By Brianna Aguayo Villalon, Danielle Lee
The American Public Health Association hosts an Annual Meeting and Expo, bringing together over 12,000 public health professionals from around the world to collaborate, share research findings, and expand the field. The event will take place in Washington, D.C., from November 2 to 5, 2025. This year’s…
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