An Evaluation of the USDA Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Pilot Program in Wisconsin Schools

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An Evaluation of the USDA Fresh Fruit and
Vegetable Pilot Program in Wisconsin Schools
University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire

• Anjali Anand and Beth Lutz
• Undergraduate Students
• University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire
• Eric Jamelske, Ph.D.
• Assistant Professor, Economics Department
  University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire
• Lori Bica, Ph.D.
• Associate Professor, Psychology Department
• University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire

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Overview

• Motivation introduction
• Fresh fruit and vegetable program
• Evaluation process
• Willingness to try new fruits vegetables
• Changes in consumption for low intake students
• Teacher parent surveys
• Discussion future research

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Introduction

• Overweight is now the most common medical
  condition of childhood in the United States, with
  the prevalence having more than doubled over the
  past 20 years
• Poor nutrition, including inadequate fruit and
  vegetable consumption amongst children and
  adolescents, remains a central cause
• In 2002, the U.S. Department of Agriculture
  (USDA) Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program (FFVP)
  was created to improve nutrition and help combat
  childhood obesity

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Introduction

• In November 2005, Wisconsin was added as an
  expansion state
• 25 schools provided daily fruit and vegetable
  snacks to students in combination with nutrition
  education
• We evaluate whether this program resulted in
  positive changes in attitude and behavior in
  terms of eating fruits and vegetables

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WI Fresh Fruit Vegetable Program

• Unique partnerships

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Wisconsin Fresh Fruit Vegetable Program
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Evaluation Process

• Pre-program survey March 2006 (4th, 7th, 9th
  grades)
• Post-program survey I May, June 2006 (4th, 7th,
  9th grades)
• Post-program survey II March 2007 (5th, 8th, 10th
  grades)
• 25 program and 10 control schools
• Monthly food service reports
• Teacher and parent surveys (5th grade)

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Sample

• Pretest sample of 2,863
• 2,287 treatment 576 control
• Posttest data entered for a subset of full
  sample
• Further limited to only those with both pretest
  and posttest responses to survey questions that
  are the focus of this study
• 1,127 participants
• 784 in 10 treatment schools 343 in 10 control
  schools

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Measurement Evaluation

• Indicator variable equal to 1 for those students
  with a positive change between the pre-test and
  post-test and 0 otherwise

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Measurement Evaluation

• Probit regression analysis
• gender, race/ethnicity, grade, physical activity,
  TV/video game limits, family dinners, and
  fast-food consumption
• Treatment students were 12.1 percentage points
  more likely to report increased willingness to
  try a new fruit at school (p
• Treatment students were 6.7 percentage points
  more likely to report increased willingness to
  try a new vegetable at school (p 0.02)

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Measurement Evaluation

• Students reported their eating patterns using a
  list of food items, including 39 fruits and
  vegetables, for three consecutive days
• Calculated each student's average daily fruit and
  vegetable intake for the three-day period
• Subset of students who reported average daily
  fruit and vegetable intake of one or less on the
  pretest

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Measurement Evaluation

• Indicator variable equal to 1 for those students
  with a positive change between the pretest and
  posttest and 0 otherwise
• Positive change was defined as an increase in
  average daily fruit and vegetable intake of at
  least 0.2 from pretest to posttest
• The mean of this new variable measures the
  percent of students that increased their average
  daily fruit and vegetable consumption between the
  pretest and posttest

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Measurement Evaluation

• A probit regression analysis with controls
• Treatment students who reported low consumption
  initially were 19.5 percentage points more likely
  than control school students to report increased
  average daily intake of fruits and vegetables (p
  0.07)
• 4th grade treatment students (n 40) were 29.7
  percentage points more likely than control
  students (n 17) to report increased average
  daily fruit and vegetable intake (p 0.05)

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Findings

• We find a difference between the groups in
  willingness to try new fruits and vegetables at
  school, but not at home
• These findings are not surprising given that
  school is where students are exposed to the new
  foods and where they are engaging in activities
  designed to promote fruits and vegetables
• We find some evidence of a difference between the
  groups in increased average daily fruit and
  vegetable intake among students with low initial
  consumption
• Positive program impacts were largest among 4th
  graders

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Findings

• Long term program success will require impacting
  both attitude and behavior beyond school and
  into the home
• We anticipate that differences in attitudes
  toward trying new fruits and vegetables at home
  will emerge with longer exposure to the program
• We also anticipate that differences in average
  daily fruit and vegetable intake will grow with
  longer exposure to the program

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Future Research Plans

• Also important for program success is the
  commitment and support of school personnel and
  administration
• We conducted surveys of 5th grade teachers (N38,
  15 schools) and parents (N256, 15 schools) in
  May 2007
• 1,100 fifth grade students in 16 schools
• 52 fifth grade teachers in 16 schools

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Teacher Comments

• Students looked forward to the snacks...actually
  they seemed to work harder and with more focus.
• We discussed the nutritional value of fruits
  veggies to our bodies.
• Our kitchen staff sent emails about the nutrients
  the students in my class would look up what the
  nutrients help in our body.

• We talked about nutrition, good snacks vs. bad
  snacks.
• We had 1/2 a pg. color sheetsthey colored it the
  color of the snack too, to see if they were
  getting diverse variety of nutrients.
• We have a food pyramid connect to itwe cooked
  some items and tried recipes.

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Parent Comments

• As parents, we love the fruit and vegetable
  program.
• My son wants me to tell you, Please Don't Stop!
• It lets him try a variety of fruits and
  vegetables we might not always buy at home.
• Great Program! Builds awareness of healthy eating
  habits. Reinforces the message we give at home!

• On weekends fruits and veggies are now also the
  snack of choice.
• My son loves fruits and veggies now.
• I only wish it had been offered earlier
• It has helped to reinforce what I've tried to do
  at homethey've accepted what I'm saying more
  readily.
• When children see other kids eating fruits and
  vegetables, it makes them want to eat them too.

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Conclusions

• Both parents and teachers like the program and
  perceive that students also like the program
• Parents report students trying more new fruits
  and vegetables and eating more fruits and
  vegetables overall
• Almost half of parents report their children
  asking to buy more fruits and vegetables
• Nutrition education activities in the classroom
  and parental involvement in the program are lower
  than desired

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Future Research

• Analyze program effects after one year
• Examine food service reports to identify best
  practices
• Focus on schools with intensive intervention
• Further examine dietary recall data and changes
  in average daily fruit and vegetable intake
• Continue more detailed analysis of teacher and
  parent surveys