Supporting Wellness at Pantries Improves Access to Healthy Foods in New Haven
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At a Glance
The Community Alliance for Research and Engagement (CARE) has partnered with food pantries in New Haven to implement Supporting Wellness at Pantries (SWAP), an evidence-based nutrition program that aims to increase access to and distribution of healthier foods. CARE has partnered with 10 pantries to implement SWAP, with a total reach of more than 25,000 people per year. SWAP has effectively increased the availability of nutritious foods, particularly in low-income neighborhoods and communities of color, where the most significant health inequities are experienced.
Public Health Challenge
In New Haven, CT, CARE focuses its REACH activities in six low-income neighborhoods, which consist of approximately 80% Black or Hispanic/Latino residents compared to 61% citywide. In these neighborhoods, 1 in 3 residents live below the poverty level,1 and approximately 3 in 10 adults experience food insecurity2. These communities face drastically higher rates of chronic diseases, compared to national and state averages. Addressing health inequities requires improving residents’ access to healthy foods.
Approach
Since 2019, CARE and partnering pantries have been implementing SWAP, which uses a stoplight system to help promote healthier food choices at food banks and food pantries.3 SWAP ranks foods based on levels of saturated fat, sodium, and added sugar—nutrients linked with increased chronic disease risk.4
CARE provides training to pantry staff and volunteers on using the SWAP guidelines to rank food as Green, Yellow, or Red based on nutritional values. Pantries receive promotional materials and are trained on promoting SWAP among pantry guests by labeling food items with color-coded tags and displaying Green items prominently. CARE also conducts regular site visits with participating SWAP pantries to provide support as needed.
Results
Pantry staff and volunteers have reported that SWAP gives them an “additional boost” to help further their mission of offering healthy foods to pantry guests by amplifying their awareness of and commitment to distributing nutritious foods. They have also acknowledged that SWAP’s simple guidelines are a practical and beneficial tool to guide pantry operations, particularly in terms of tracking food inventory and informing food procurement. SWAP streamlines the process of identifying healthy foods and provides education on healthier food options to pantry guests.
Ultimately, the SWAP program led to shifts at participating pantries, marked by an increase in the availability of healthier foods and a decrease in unhealthy options. For example, one pantry’s inventory experienced an increase in the amount of food ranked Green by approximately 6%. Similarly, another pantry’s inventory saw an increase of 5% in items ranked Green, as well as a decrease in Red items of 3% following SWAP implementation.
For More Information
SWAP is a program of the Institute for Hunger Research & Solutions at Connecticut Foodshare. For more information about SWAP, visit ctfoodshare.org or contact swap@foodshare.org.
The Community Alliance for Research and Engagement (CARE) is implementing SWAP across pantries in New Haven, CT. For more information about CARE please visit carenhv.org or contact Sofia I. Morales at sofia.morales@yale.edu. This project is funded by the CDC’s Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH) program.
Sustaining Success
To further enhance the impact of the SWAP program, the primary focus of future efforts will be addressing the challenges of limited availability of healthy food items from regional food banks, such as Connecticut Foodshare (CTFS). In order to do so, a concerted, collaborative effort is underway to enhance the procurement of healthier foods from food banks, enabling pantries across New Haven to continue making a positive difference in the lives of their guests.
References
DataHaven. Connecticut Neighborhood Profiles. https://www.ctdatahaven.org/data-resources/connecticut-city-neighborhood-profiles. Published 2019. Accessed March 8, 2023.
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Morales, S. I., Vicente, G., LaMonaca, K., Rios, J., Cunningham, S. D., Higginbottom, J., Mathios, E., Werlin, S., Cramer, J., Santilli, A., & O’Connor Duffany, K. (2023). The Implementation of a Nutrition Intervention in Food Pantries: The Spirit of SWAP. Health promotion practice, 24(1_suppl), 80S–91S. https://doi.org/10.1177/15248399221112454
Martin, K. S., Wolff, M., Callahan, K., & Schwartz, M. B. (2019). Supporting Wellness at Pantries: Development of a Nutrition Stoplight System for Food Banks and Food Pantries. Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, 119(4), 553–559. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jand.2018.03.003