Food Security
Conditions
Brief summary
The primary objectives of this study are to determine whether the transition to online ordering at a choice-based food pantry network influences food security status among low-income adults and determining whether there are differences in impact by age group.
Interventions
BEHAVIORALTransition to Online Ordering
The intervention food pantry will transition to online ordering at least once.
Sponsors
National Institute on Aging (NIA)
NYU Langone Health
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
PREVENTION
Masking
NONE
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
* aged 18 years or older * have visited a food pantry that either is or is not scheduled to transition to online ordering at least once * have capacity and willingness to provide consent * speaks English
Exclusion criteria
* aged less than 18 years * have not visited a food pantry that either is or is not scheduled to transition to online ordering at least once * does not speak English
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| U.S. Household Food Security Survey Module: Six-Item Short Form Score | Baseline | 6-item assessment of food security. The total score ranges from 0-6, where: 5-6 = very low food security; 2-4 = low food security; and 0-1 = high or marginal food security. |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Time to Obtain Food From Food Pantry Per Visit | Baseline | Expressed in minutes. |
| Composite Weekly Fruit & Vegetable Intake Score | Baseline | The Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System's 2017 six-item fruit and vegetable screener, where values correspond to the number of times a participant consumed fruits and vegetables per week as a composite score. The total score ranges from 0 to infinity. |
| Center for Nutrition & Health Impact's Household Nutrition Security Survey Module: Four-Item Short Form Score | Baseline | 4-item assessment of nutrition security. The four items within the measure are scored from 0 (if the participant selects Always) to 4 (if the participant selects Never). The total score is the average of the four item scores and ranges from 0-4; higher scores indicate greater nutrition security, and scores of 2 or below indicate low levels of nutrition security. |
Countries
United States
Participant flow
Participants by arm
| Arm | Count |
|---|---|
| Food Pantry Scheduled to Transition to Online Ordering Low-income adults who have visited the food pantry that is scheduled to transition to online ordering at least once. Participants will complete an in-person survey and a research assistant will record the food items they received in the relevant visit to the pantry. After the transition to online ordering at the intervention food pantry, participants will again complete the survey. Food selections for participants in the this arm will be accessible through the online ordering platform.
Transition to Online Ordering: The intervention food pantry will transition to online ordering at least once. | 77 |
| Food Pantry NOT Scheduled to Transition to Online Ordering Low-income adults who have visited the food pantry that is NOT scheduled to transition to online ordering at least once. Participants will complete an in-person survey and a research assistant will record the food items they received in the relevant visit to the pantry. After the transition to online ordering at the intervention food pantry, participants will again complete the survey. Participants in this arm will record their food selections and send them to the study team. | 58 |
| Total | 135 |
Withdrawals & dropouts
| Period | Reason | FG000 | FG001 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall Study | Lost to Follow-up | 22 | 20 |
| Overall Study | Withdrawal by Subject | 15 | 12 |
Baseline characteristics
| Characteristic | Total | Food Pantry NOT Scheduled to Transition to Online Ordering | Food Pantry Scheduled to Transition to Online Ordering |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age, Continuous | 59.1 years STANDARD_DEVIATION 16.3 | 65.2 years STANDARD_DEVIATION 17.2 | 52.9 years STANDARD_DEVIATION 15.3 |
| Ethnicity (NIH/OMB) Hispanic or Latino | 25 Participants | 12 Participants | 13 Participants |
| Ethnicity (NIH/OMB) Not Hispanic or Latino | 105 Participants | 44 Participants | 61 Participants |
| Ethnicity (NIH/OMB) Unknown or Not Reported | 5 Participants | 2 Participants | 3 Participants |
| Race/Ethnicity, Customized American Indian or Alaska Native | 4 Participants | 1 Participants | 3 Participants |
| Race/Ethnicity, Customized Asian | 14 Participants | 6 Participants | 8 Participants |
| Race/Ethnicity, Customized Black or African American | 16 Participants | 7 Participants | 9 Participants |
| Race/Ethnicity, Customized Middle Eastern or North African | 2 Participants | 0 Participants | 2 Participants |
| Race/Ethnicity, Customized More than one race | 4 Participants | 1 Participants | 3 Participants |
| Race/Ethnicity, Customized Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander | 1 Participants | 1 Participants | 0 Participants |
| Race/Ethnicity, Customized Unknown or not reported | 5 Participants | 2 Participants | 3 Participants |
| Race/Ethnicity, Customized White | 89 Participants | 40 Participants | 49 Participants |
| Region of Enrollment United States | 135 participants | 58 participants | 77 participants |
| Sex/Gender, Customized Female | 98 Participants | 35 Participants | 63 Participants |
| Sex/Gender, Customized Male | 32 Participants | 23 Participants | 9 Participants |
| Sex/Gender, Customized Other Gender | 2 Participants | 0 Participants | 2 Participants |
| Sex/Gender, Customized Unknown or not reported | 3 Participants | 0 Participants | 3 Participants |
Adverse events
| Event type | EG000 affected / at risk | EG001 affected / at risk |
|---|---|---|
| deaths Total, all-cause mortality | 0 / 114 | 0 / 90 |
| other Total, other adverse events | 0 / 114 | 0 / 90 |
| serious Total, serious adverse events | 0 / 114 | 0 / 90 |
Outcome results
Primary
U.S. Household Food Security Survey Module: Six-Item Short Form Score
6-item assessment of food security. The total score ranges from 0-6, where: 5-6 = very low food security; 2-4 = low food security; and 0-1 = high or marginal food security.
Time frame: Baseline
| Arm | Measure | Value (MEAN) | Dispersion |
|---|---|---|---|
| Food Pantry Scheduled to Transition to Online Ordering | U.S. Household Food Security Survey Module: Six-Item Short Form Score | 3.6 score on a scale | Standard Deviation 2.2 |
| Food Pantry NOT Scheduled to Transition to Online Ordering | U.S. Household Food Security Survey Module: Six-Item Short Form Score | 2.7 score on a scale | Standard Deviation 2.3 |
Primary
U.S. Household Food Security Survey Module: Six-Item Short Form Score
6-item assessment of food security. The total score ranges from 0-6, where: 5-6 = very low food security; 2-4 = low food security; and 0-1 = high or marginal food security.
Time frame: Month 8
| Arm | Measure | Value (MEAN) | Dispersion |
|---|---|---|---|
| Food Pantry Scheduled to Transition to Online Ordering | U.S. Household Food Security Survey Module: Six-Item Short Form Score | 2.9 score on a scale | Standard Deviation 2.3 |
| Food Pantry NOT Scheduled to Transition to Online Ordering | U.S. Household Food Security Survey Module: Six-Item Short Form Score | 2.0 score on a scale | Standard Deviation 2.2 |
Secondary
Center for Nutrition & Health Impact's Household Nutrition Security Survey Module: Four-Item Short Form Score
4-item assessment of nutrition security. The four items within the measure are scored from 0 (if the participant selects Always) to 4 (if the participant selects Never). The total score is the average of the four item scores and ranges from 0-4; higher scores indicate greater nutrition security, and scores of 2 or below indicate low levels of nutrition security.
Time frame: Month 8
| Arm | Measure | Value (MEAN) | Dispersion |
|---|---|---|---|
| Food Pantry Scheduled to Transition to Online Ordering | Center for Nutrition & Health Impact's Household Nutrition Security Survey Module: Four-Item Short Form Score | 2.9 score on a scale | Standard Deviation 2.3 |
| Food Pantry NOT Scheduled to Transition to Online Ordering | Center for Nutrition & Health Impact's Household Nutrition Security Survey Module: Four-Item Short Form Score | 2.0 score on a scale | Standard Deviation 2.2 |
Secondary
Center for Nutrition & Health Impact's Household Nutrition Security Survey Module: Four-Item Short Form Score
4-item assessment of nutrition security. The four items within the measure are scored from 0 (if the participant selects Always) to 4 (if the participant selects Never). The total score is the average of the four item scores and ranges from 0-4; higher scores indicate greater nutrition security, and scores of 2 or below indicate low levels of nutrition security.
Time frame: Baseline
| Arm | Measure | Value (MEAN) | Dispersion |
|---|---|---|---|
| Food Pantry Scheduled to Transition to Online Ordering | Center for Nutrition & Health Impact's Household Nutrition Security Survey Module: Four-Item Short Form Score | 3.6 score on a scale | Standard Deviation 2.2 |
| Food Pantry NOT Scheduled to Transition to Online Ordering | Center for Nutrition & Health Impact's Household Nutrition Security Survey Module: Four-Item Short Form Score | 2.7 score on a scale | Standard Deviation 2.3 |
Secondary
Composite Weekly Fruit & Vegetable Intake Score
The Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System's 2017 six-item fruit and vegetable screener, where values correspond to the number of times a participant consumed fruits and vegetables per week as a composite score. The total score ranges from 0 to infinity.
Time frame: Baseline
| Arm | Measure | Value (MEAN) | Dispersion |
|---|---|---|---|
| Food Pantry Scheduled to Transition to Online Ordering | Composite Weekly Fruit & Vegetable Intake Score | 16.0 score on a scale | Standard Deviation 12.4 |
| Food Pantry NOT Scheduled to Transition to Online Ordering | Composite Weekly Fruit & Vegetable Intake Score | 18.1 score on a scale | Standard Deviation 18.3 |
Secondary
Composite Weekly Fruit & Vegetable Intake Score
The Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System's 2017 six-item fruit and vegetable screener, where values correspond to the number of times a participant consumed fruits and vegetables per week as a composite score. The total score ranges from 0 to infinity.
Time frame: Month 8
| Arm | Measure | Value (MEAN) | Dispersion |
|---|---|---|---|
| Food Pantry Scheduled to Transition to Online Ordering | Composite Weekly Fruit & Vegetable Intake Score | 16.1 score on a scale | Standard Deviation 9.9 |
| Food Pantry NOT Scheduled to Transition to Online Ordering | Composite Weekly Fruit & Vegetable Intake Score | 16.4 score on a scale | Standard Deviation 7.6 |
Secondary
Time to Obtain Food From Food Pantry Per Visit
Expressed in minutes.
Time frame: Baseline
| Arm | Measure | Value (MEAN) | Dispersion |
|---|---|---|---|
| Food Pantry Scheduled to Transition to Online Ordering | Time to Obtain Food From Food Pantry Per Visit | 5.1 minutes | Standard Deviation 11.1 |
| Food Pantry NOT Scheduled to Transition to Online Ordering | Time to Obtain Food From Food Pantry Per Visit | 27.7 minutes | Standard Deviation 28.2 |
Secondary
Time to Obtain Food From Food Pantry Per Visit
Expressed in minutes.
Time frame: Month 8
| Arm | Measure | Value (MEAN) | Dispersion |
|---|---|---|---|
| Food Pantry Scheduled to Transition to Online Ordering | Time to Obtain Food From Food Pantry Per Visit | 3.7 minutes | Standard Deviation 4.3 |
| Food Pantry NOT Scheduled to Transition to Online Ordering | Time to Obtain Food From Food Pantry Per Visit | 29.4 minutes | Standard Deviation 29 |