P70 - Impact of Social Marketing Interventions Aiming to Increase Fruit and Vegetable Consumption in Low-Income Adults in Georgia: University of Georgia Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program-Education (UGA SNAP-Ed) FNV Campaign

Abstract

Background (Background, Rationale, Prior Research, and/or Theory): Social marketing is emerging as a promising method to deliver nutrition education messages targeted to low-income individuals, but little evidence is available on its impact in SNAP-Ed programs. Objective: To examine the feasibility, acceptability, and impact of the Partnership for a Healthier America (PHA) fruit and vegetable (FV) campaign in SNAP-Ed eligible adults in Georgia to promote FV consumption. Study Design, Setting, Participants, Intervention: Process evaluation was conducted throughout the intervention using commercial administrative data reporting tools including Facebook, billboards, and radio ads. For the impact evaluation, self-administered post-intervention surveys were implemented using three modalities (i.e. online, intercept, and direct mail surveys) while employing a non-randomized control study design in 1,164 Georgians (mean age 47.2 ± 16.9, 78.0% female, 61.4% minority, 80.9% from intervention counties) from SNAP-Ed eligible zip code areas in four intervention and two control counties. The FV campaign was implemented using billboards, radio ads, and Facebook in SNAP-Ed eligible areas from three urban and one rural counties in summer 2017. Outcome Measures and Analysis: Process evaluation estimated program reach, impressions, dosage, and engagement. Impact evaluation assessed participants' awareness, satisfaction, and intention to change due to campaign exposure. Results: During the two-month period, the FV campaign reached 1.2 million people and generated 4.8 million impressions with 65,879 engagements. The campaign appears to have reached both intervention and control counties (22.0% and 20.8%, respectively), especially radio ads (5.3% and 8.2%, respectively). More than three-fourths of survey participants reported enjoyment of the campaign materials across three media. Those exposed to the FV campaign were more likely to report willingness and actual behaviors of eating of >1 FV/day than those not exposed. Conclusions and Implications: The FV campaign has the potential to reach and impact SNAP-Ed eligible target audiences to promote FV consumption with high satisfaction. The findings will inform the refinement of the design and evaluation of the statewide SNAP-Ed FV campaign in Georgia. Funding: USDA.