OBJECTIVES: The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) is a federal program that improves the health of low-income women (pregnant and postpartum) and children up to 5 years of age in the United States. However, participation is suboptimal. We explored reasons for incomplete redemption of benefits and early dropout from WIC. METHODS: In 2020–2021, we conducted semistructured interviews to explore factors that influenced WIC program utilization among current WIC caregivers (n = 20) and caregivers choosing to leave while still eligible (n = 17) in Massachusetts. By using a deductive analytic approach, we developed a codebook grounded in the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research. RESULTS: Themes across both current and early-leaving participants included positive feelings about social support from the WIC clinic staff and savings offered through the food package. Participants described reduced satisfaction related to insufficient funds for fruits and vegetables, food benefits inflexibility, concerns about in-clinic health tests, and in-store item mislabeling. Participants described how electronic benefit transfer cards and smartphone apps eased the use of benefits and reduced stigma during shopping. Some participants attributed leaving early to a belief that they were taking benefits from others. CONCLUSIONS: Current and early-leaving participants shared positive WIC experiences, but barriers to full participation exist. Food package modification may lead to improved redemption and retention, including increasing the cash value benefit for fruits and vegetables and diversifying food options. Research is needed regarding the misperception that participation means “taking” benefits away from someone else in need.

Evidence consistently suggests that plant-based diets promote human and planetary health. Reducing large-scale animal-based food production generates environmental benefits, as the entire livestock agriculture chain plays an outsized role in greenhouse gas emissions, land change and degradation, and scarcity-weighted water use. However, substituting animal products with their plant-based counterparts must come with consideration of the nutritional quality and resource usage of plant-based food production and processing operations. Several policy reforms have been implemented at the national, state, and municipal levels in the United States to support a transition toward more plant-based diets. Federal programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and the Dietary Guidelines for Americans generally promote the consumption of unprocessed plant-based foods but include little to no information on sustainability and the harmful environmental impact of animal-based foods. National policies are complemented by state efforts aimed at incentivizing produce purchased from local suppliers and encouraging resource-conserving agriculture. At the local level, public schools are implementing programs to promote plant-based protein on their menus, and urban gardens are sprouting across the country to increase access to organic farming. This mini-review examines these policy reforms and behavioral intervention strategies, based on the social-ecological model, and discuss their capacity and limitations to promote a shift toward sustainably produced plant-based diets in the United States. We conclude that transforming the food systems toward plant-based diets in the animal-centered United States requires multi-sector collaboration and context-specific policy solutions to address diet-related climate concerns without neglecting health, social, and financial constraints.

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Objectives This study aimed to document the perspectives of past participants of a text- and website-based ethnic-specific healthy eating program delivered in 2019–2021 for 76 ethnically-diverse Latinos in Boston, MA. Following a healthy diet may help prevent excessive burden of disease; however, current programs fail to address distinctions by ethnicity. Formative research with community partners showed that the Latino community warranted deeply tailored dietary programs. Hence, we aimed to identify key facilitators and barriers to the program implementation and uptake, with the goal of improving future iterations, across diverse populations. Methods In 2021, a trained bilingual researcher conducted semi-structured phone interviews with 29% of past participants (n = 22). The interview guide and codebook were grounded in the RE-AIM framework. Coders employed a deductive analytic approach. Results Most participants were Spanish-speaking women over the age of 35, who graduated college and have lived in the U.S. over 20 years. Participants identified a need for ethnic-specific cultural tailoring and for recognizing similarities and differences across Latino cultures in nutrition programs. Motivations to participate included giving back to the Latino community, contributing to science, learning something new, and losing weight. Continued participation was driven by the value assigned to social interaction and discussion when learning about healthy eating strategies. Participants reported higher engagement with content delivered via text message than website, which presented barriers to access. Participants also appreciated receiving familiar content, which served as a “cue to action” for common health behaviors. Through participation, individuals reported increased autonomy and awareness of their dietary choices and physical changes. Conclusions There is a recognized need for ethnic-specific health promotion efforts among Hispanics/Latinos. To facilitate program uptake, interventions should deliver opportunities for social interaction, emphasize ease of access, and highlight opportunities for participant engagement to garner autonomy and awareness. Funding Sources Harvard University Rose Service Learning Fellowship; NIH/NCI; NIH/NHLBI.