Food Access & Food Insecurity

California 4-H alumni Sudharsan Gopalakrishnan shares how 4-H opened doors for him to rise. He is a National 4-H STEM Mentor & Educator and adult volunteer with the National 4-H GIS/GPS Leadership Team.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, US social safety net programs, such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, commonly known as SNAP, Pandemic-EBT, and the Child Tax Credit, were temporarily expanded or created to combat rising food, housing, and economic insecurity among families. A recent study…

Socioeconomic status strongly influences children's nutrition and health, as low-income families often face barriers in meeting basic needs. To help address these challenges and reduce health disparities, safety net programs such as Medicaid, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and the Special…

Report • September 2025 • Download PDF (815 KB)Table of ContentsBackgroundStudy ObjectivesStudy Design and MethodsStudy sampleData collectionIntervention and Control Group Text Messages (SMS)AnalysisFindingsStudy participantsBehavioral changes among survey respondentsPerceptions of the text messages…

Hannah R. Thompson began her role as the new director of the Nutrition Policy Institute beginning September 1, 2025. Thompson has served as NPI’s senior epidemiologist since 2020 while also working as an assistant research professor at the University of California, Berkeley School of Public Health. She…

A recent study published in the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior explored the perceptions of elementary school parents and staff in a large, urban California school district that recently introduced more freshly-prepared school lunches. Based on interviews and focus groups conducted from May…

The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, commonly known as WIC, provides nutritious food, nutrition education, breastfeeding support, and health care referrals to pregnant and postpartum women and families with young children with low income. WIC participation improves…

Nutrition Policy Institute School Meals for All research was featured in a guest article in the summer issue of the California School Boards Association’s quarterly magazine, California Schools. The article highlights California’s School Meals for All policy, also known as universal school meals,…

The Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) reached 87 adults from the Sutter Adult School’s English as a Second Language (ESL) program through the Families Eating Smart and Moving More curriculum!