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

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.