Voices for Food: Food Policy Councils, Food Security and Healthy Food Choices

Food Security Clinical Trial

— VFF  

Official title:

Voices for Food: Utilizing Food Policy Councils to Bridge the Gap Between Food Security and Healthy Food Choices

Clinical Trial Details — Status: Completed

Administrative data

• NCT number: NCT03566095
• Other study ID #: 2013-69004-20401
• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Start date: August 1, 2014
• Est. completion date: March 15, 2018

Study information

• Verified date: June 2018
• Source: South Dakota State University
• Contact: n/a
• Is FDA regulated: No
• Study type: Interventional

Clinical Trial Summary

This study evaluates the effectiveness of coaching and Voices for Food materials on establishing Food Policy Councils (FPCs) and using guided client choice in rural food pantries to improve food security and diet quality among food pantry clients, and to improve the food environment in rural, midwestern food pantries. Half of the communities received coaching and the Voices for Food kit, the other half only received the Voices for Food kit.

Description:

Community coaching is a a strategy that helps community leaders plan for and overcome challenges to community development. Interventions at the community level are most effective when they are conceived and led by locals. Community coaches can aid the local community in the development of FPCs in rural communities. FPCs have the potential to improve the nutritional quality of available food, and connect a diverse network of food system stakeholders from the public, private and nonprofit sectors, which includes local food pantries. Food pantry users are food insecure and avoid hunger by consuming low cost and shelf stable food items. Guided client choice is a system of distribution that can be employed in food pantries and supported by FPCs. Guided client-choice is a model of distribution in which pantry clients choose the foods they would like from the pantry based upon family size and is formatted based upon USDA MyPlate. Guided client choice has been shown to meet the needs of the pantry client base better than the traditional model of distribution often found in food pantries. Food pantries have the opportunity to meet the nutritional needs of the food insecure population.

Voices for Food is a multi-leveled socio-ecological, longitudinal, matched treatment and comparison study to develop food policy councils (FPCs), and improve food security and diet quality in rural communities. Voices for Food was conducted in 24 rural, high poverty counties in South Dakota, Indiana, Missouri, Michigan, Nebraska and Ohio. Counties were assigned to a treatment (n=12) or comparison (n=12) group.

Intervention activities focus on three key components that impact food security: 1) community coaching by Extension Educators/field staff, 2) FPC development, and 3) development of a MyChoice (guided client choice) food pantry. Community coaching, along with the Voices for Food kit was only provided to treatment counties. Comparison communities only received the Voices for Food kit. Evaluation components focus on three levels of the intervention: 1) Community (FPCs), 2) Food Pantry Organization and Food Environment, and 3) Pantry Client & Families. Participants in this study were community stakeholders, food pantry directors, staff/volunteers and food pantry clients. Pantry food access/availability including pantry food quality and quantity, household food security and pantry client dietary intake are dependent variables.

Recruitment information / eligibility

• Status: Completed
• Enrollment: 1735
• Est. completion date: March 15, 2018
• Est. primary completion date: March 15, 2018
• Accepts healthy volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers
• Gender: All
• Age group: 18 Years and older

Eligibility

Inclusion Criteria:

• Food Pantry Clients must be current clientele by visiting the participating food pantry at least once in the last year, English-speaking.

• Food Pantry Directors must be 18 years or older (19 if in Nebraska), English-speaking and a director of a participating food pantry.

• Food Pantry Staff/Volunteers must be 18 years or older (19 if in Nebraska), English-speaking and a staff/volunteer of a participating food pantry.

• Community Stakeholders must be 18 years or older (19 if in Nebraska), English-speaking and reside in the participating community.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Under 18 years old (19 if in Nebraska)

• Non English- speaking

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Food Security
• Nutritive Value

Intervention

Behavioral:
• Coaching and Voices for Food Kit
Community Coaching and Voices for Food Kit
• Voices for Food Kit
Voices for Food Kit

Locations

Country	Name	City	State
n/a

Sponsors (6)

Lead Sponsor	Collaborator
South Dakota State University	Michigan State University, Ohio State University, Purdue University, University of Missouri-Columbia, University of Nebraska Lincoln

Outcome

Type	Measure	Description	Time frame	Safety issue
Primary	The United States Household Food Security Survey Module	Change in food security of food pantry clients. Individuals will be classified as very low food secure, low food secure, marginal food secure and high food secure.	4 years
Primary	Healthy Eating Index (HEI) Score	Change in diet quality of food pantry clients. The Automated Self-Administered 24-hour (ASA24®) Dietary Assessment Too allows for calculation of the Healthy Eating Index score, which is a measure of diet quality.	4 years
Secondary	Food Policy Council Implementation Form	The Food Policy Council Implementation Form is a study developed assessment tool that assesses the degree of food policy council implementation. The Food Council Implementation Form documents changes occurring within the Food Policy Council.	4 years
Secondary	Food Pantry MyChoice Observation Tool	The Food Pantry MyChoice Observation Tool is a study developed assessment tool that assesses the degree of MyChoice (guided client choice) implementation. The tool documents the extent to which key components of the MyChoice food pantry model are physically in place at the pantry and part of the food, food display, and distribution process.	4 years