Clinical trial NCT04458350: SNAP Fruit and Vegetable Incentive Program Digital Promotions for Farmers' Markets
Official title: Impact of Randomized Digital Promotions of SNAP Fruit and Vegetable Incentive Program on Farmers' Market Patronage and Sales
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: COMPLETED
Phase: NA
Conditions: Fruit and Vegetable Intake
Healthy Diet
Food Insecurity
Keywords: Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program
Incentives
Promotions
Lead sponsor: Tufts University
Sponsor class: OTHER
Collaborators: name: United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)
First posted: 2020-07-07
Enrollment: 251966
Sex: ALL
Minimum age (years): 18
Standard ages: ADULT
OLDER_ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: yes
Allocation: RANDOMIZED
Intervention model: PARALLEL
Primary purpose: OTHER

Brief summary: The purpose of this study is to assess the impact of digital promotions of a Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) fruit and vegetable incentive program on SNAP participant patronage and sales at farmers' markets. The study will analyze SNAP transactions from zip codes that receive digital promotions compared to zip codes that receive no additional promotions.

Detailed description: Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) financial incentives for fruits and vegetables (FV) increase FV purchases and consumption with long-term implications for nutrition-related chronic disease. However, many SNAP participants are not aware of these programs, leaving them underutilized. The investigators aim to assess if digital promotions of SNAP incentive programs increase SNAP patronage and sales at farmers' markets. Eligible farmers' markets in the New England Nutrition Incentives Collaborative (NENIC) will receive digital promotions for their SNAP fruit and vegetable incentive programs on the Fresh EBT app and Facebook, randomly assigned to nearby eligible zip codes. Eligible zip codes will be randomized to receive the intervention (digital promotion) or serve as a comparison (no additional promotion) with ads running for 13 weeks (Summer 2020 market season).

Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

* Farmers' markets in the New England Nutrition Incentives Collaborative (NENIC) are eligible to participate if they were data compliant in Summer 2019 (\>90% SNAP transactions reported with zip codes) and have 2 or more nearby, target zip codes.
* Zip codes are eligible if their zip code tabulation area (ZCTA) centroid is within a 7-mile (urban county) or 16-mile (rural county) travel distance of eligible NENIC farmers' market and the zip code has at least 25 active users on the Fresh EBT app

Exclusion Criteria:

* Zip code is not in Connecticut, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, or Vermont

Primary outcomes:
measure: Average number of market SNAP transactions by zip code for Summer 2020
timeFrame: 13 weeks
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Average market SNAP-related sales by zip code for Summer 2020
timeFrame: 13 weeks
measure: Average market new SNAP customers by zip code for Summer 2020
timeFrame: 13 weeks
Other outcomes:
Locations:
city: Boston
country: United States
facility: Tufts University Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy
state: Massachusetts
Study officials:
References: