What do you want to eat? Cuisine and nutrition intervention preferences among people using a large food pantry in Texas

Objective

Nutrition interventions delivered through food pantries could reduce health disparities for people experiencing food insecurity. We identified clients’ preferences for cuisines, nutrition interventions, and outcomes and whether preferences differ for subpopulations.

Methods

Cross-sectional study at a large pantry in Dallas, Texas (N = 200). Survey collected from February-May 2023 on demographics, cuisine preferences, nutrition intervention preferences, and outcomes clients hope to achieve when changing lifestyle (weight loss, feeling comfortable in clothes, feeling good about diet, wellbeing). A subsample (N = 130) had height and weight measured. We tested whether food security and BMI (categorical) were associated with intervention or outcome preferences using IBM SPSS Statistics (Version 29) to conduct analysis of variance.

Results

Top-rated cuisines were Mexican, Chinese, Italian. Participants reported a desire for interventions implemented through the pantry reflected by high Nutrition Intervention Index scores. The highest rated intervention was bringing more healthy food into the pantry and lowest rated was restricting unhealthy donations.

Overall wellbeing was the most important outcome and weight loss the least important.

Neither food security nor BMI were associated with desire for interventions. All outcomes were rated in a similar pattern, though people with obesity and overweight rated weight loss as more important than people with normal weight.

Conclusions

Most participants demonstrated a strong desire for healthier, ethnically diverse options, and nutrition interventions delivered through the pantry. Our findings explore cuisines and outcomes preferred by people that use food pantries which can guide researchers, clinicians, and non-profit organizations in planning and promotion of nutrition programs for pantry clients.