Home food procurement associated with improved food security during the COVID-19 pandemic (preprint)

Home food procurement (HFP), including gardening, is associated with food security and improved health behaviors and outcomes. In the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, HFP increased in many high-income countries; yet little evidence has demonstrated what impact HFP had on food security. Furthermore, existing HFP studies are largely qualitative from unrepresentative samples, limiting population-level understanding of HFP engagement and impact. Using data from a representative sample of residents (n=988) in northern New England in the United States conducted in Spring/Summer 2021, we explore the relationship between HFP engagement in the first year of the pandemic and changes in food security status. We employ matching techniques to compare food security outcomes in households with observably similar demographic and social characteristics, and examine food security outcomes in three periods among households who do and do not participate in HFP. Our results show that nearly 60% of respondents engaged in at least one kind of HFP in the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, with food insecure households being more likely to do HFP. Food insecure households (both newly and chronically food insecure) were also more likely to do HFP activities for the first time or more intensely than they had previously. Newly food insecure households were the most likely to engage in HFP overall, especially gardening. Furthermore, HFP engagement early in the COVID-19 pandemic is associated with improved food security for food insecure households in the 9-12 months after the start of the pandemic, though these improvements were primarily associated with newly, not chronically, food insecure households. Future research about HFP should continue to explore multiple HFP strategies and their potentially myriad relationships to food security, diet, and health outcomes.

A Multi-Site Analysis of the Prevalence of Food Security in the United States, before and during the COVID-19 Pandemic (preprint)

Background. The COVID-19 pandemic profoundly affected food systems including food security. Understanding how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted food security is important to provide support, and identify long-term impacts and needs. Objective. Our team- the National Food Access and COVID research Team (NFACT) was formed to assess food security over different U.S. study sites throughout the pandemic, using common instruments and measurements. Here we present results from 18 study sites across 15 states and nationally over the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods. A validated survey instrument was developed and implemented in whole or part across the sites throughout the first year of the pandemic, representing 22 separate surveys. Sampling methods for each study site were convenience, representative, or high-risk targeted. Food security was measured using the USDA six-item module. Food security prevalence was analyzed using analysis of variance by sampling method to statistically significant differences. Results. In total, more than 27,000 people responded to the surveys. We find higher prevalence of food insecurity (low or very low food security) since the COVID-19 pandemic, as compared to before the pandemic. In nearly all study sites, we find higher prevalence of food insecurity among Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC), households with children, and those with job disruptions. We also demonstrate lingering food insecurity, with high or increased prevalence over time in sites with repeat surveys. We find no statistically significant differences between convenience and representative surveys, but statistically higher prevalence of food insecurity among high-risk compared to convenience surveys. Conclusions. This comprehensive multi-study site effort demonstrates higher prevalence of food insecurity since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, which in multiple survey sites continues throughout the first year of the pandemic. These impacts were prevalent for certain demographic groups, and most pronounced for surveys targeting high-risk populations.