Fresh for Less: Cross-Sector Collaboration for Funding, Implementation, and Evaluation of a Local Initiative to Improve Equitable Healthy Food Access.

Abstract

This study describes the cross-sector collaboration, dynamic implementation/evaluation, and implications of Fresh for Less (FFL); an equity-focused, multi-strategy healthy food access promotion program that has been implemented since 2017 in underserved communities in Austin, Texas through farmstands, mobile markets, and Healthy Corner Stores. Annual evaluation has consisted of repeat cross-sectional quantitative surveys, qualitative customer/staff interviews, audits and cost-effective analyses. Farmstand/mobile market customers reported increased fresh produce consumption and high satisfaction. During COVID-19, mobile markets quickly pivoted to delivery, filling a huge need for safe and affordable grocery delivery. Healthy Corner Stores were not as successful, and this strategy was adapted and reintroduced in 2021. Audits show increased produce provision over time and that mobile markets offered increasingly competitive pricing. Fresh for Less demonstrates how cross-sector collaborators can work together to ensure that a program designed to improve equitable food access can be resilient, sustainable, and successful.