This thesis is an exploration of cooking as a tool for personal health and community building, as well as for larger social change of the American food system. It looks at the decline of cooking in mid-20th century America, due to changes in technology, women's movement into the workforce, and the rise of fast and processed food. It then examines three distinct efforts going on today that are bringing cooking to the forefront of what they do--one in community gardening, one in food access programs, and one in food education. Each demonstrates the unique ability that cooking has to give immediate satisfaction. The lens is then widened to understand how this immediate satisfaction can, in turn, create waves in the way our food is currently produced on a much broader scale.

abstract: Many studies have shown that access to healthy food in the US is unevenly distributed and that supermarkets and other fresh food retailers are less likely to be located in low-income minority communities, where convenience and dollar stores are more prevalent grocery options. I formed a partnership with Phoenix Revitalization Corporation, a local community development organization engaged in Central City South, Phoenix, to enhance the community's capacity to meet its community health goals by improving access to healthy food. I used a community-based participatory approach that blended qualitative and quantitative elements to accommodate collaboration between both academic and non-academic partners. Utilizing stakeholder interviews, Nutrition Environment Measures Surveys (NEMS), and mapping to analyze the community's food resources, research revealed that the community lacks adequate access to affordable, nutritious food. Community food stores (n=14) scored an average of 10.9 out of a possible 54 points using the NEMS scoring protocol. The community food assessment is an essential step in improving access to healthy food for CCS residents and provides a baseline for tracking progress to improve residents' food access. Recommendations were drafted by the research partnership to equip and empower the community with strategic, community-specific interventions based on the research findings. / Dissertation/Thesis / M.A. Sustainability 2011

abstract: BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to gain a better understanding of what food insecurity among college students. Qualitative research regarding food insecurity on college campuses has been growing as we gain a better understanding of how prevalent this issue is and its broad impact on students. However, to our knowledge there are only a handful of studies that examined the student and university staff experience using mixed methods. Qualitative data is needed to gain a deeper understanding of the student experience. OBJECTIVE: To gain deeper insights about students’ food insecurity experiences from students themselves and the university staff members who work with them. This insight is necessary to shift university’s current policies and approach to helping students experiencing food insecurity and removing the stigma of the “starving student” experience. METHODS: Surveys and interviews were used to collect data from students to gain an understanding of their current living situations and understand their personal experiences accessing food. University staff completed surveys focused on understanding staff’s experiences with student food insecurity as well as their attitudes and beliefs about students who experience hunger. RESULTS: The current study found that the financial burden of attending college along with student’s food literacy level can contribute to student’s food insecurity. Students identified barriers to food access, discussed their perceptions of their food experience, and also discussed who they lean on for support when struggling with food. Student’s previous life experiences, food literacy, and social support systems all impact the student food experience. University staff identified similar barriers that they perceive students experience when struggling with hunger and also indicated that they have received little to no training or instruction on how to support students experiencing food insecurity. CONCLUSION: These findings can be used as a building block for developing interventions and the implementation of new resources to help minimize food insecurity on college campuses. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Nutrition 2018

abstract: In October, 2009, participants of the Arizona Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) began receiving monthly Cash Value Vouchers (CVV) worth between six and 10 dollars towards the purchase of fresh fruits and vegetables. Data from the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) showed CVV redemption rates in the first two years of the program were lower than the national average of 77% redemption. In response, the ADHS WIC Food List was expanded to also include canned and frozen fruits and vegetables. More recent data from ADHS suggest that redemption rates are improving, but variably exist among different WIC sub-populations. The purpose of this project was to identify themes related to the ease or difficulty of WIC CVV use amongst different categories of low-redeeming WIC participants. A total of 8 focus groups were conducted, four at a clinic in each of two Valley cities: Surprise and Mesa. Each of the four focus groups comprised one of four targeted WIC participant categories: pregnant, postpartum, breastfeeding, and children with participation ranging from 3-9 participants per group. Using the general inductive approach, recordings of the focus groups were transcribed, hand-coded and uploaded into qualitative analysis software resulting in four emergent themes including: interactions and shopping strategies, maximizing WIC value, redemption issues, and effect of rule change. Researchers identified twelve different subthemes related to the emergent theme of interactions and strategies to improve their experience, including economic considerations during redemption. Barriers related to interactions existed that made their purchase difficult, most notably anger from the cashier and other shoppers. However, participants made use of a number of strategies to facilitate WIC purchases or extract more value out of WIC benefits, such as pooling their CVV. Finally, it appears that the fruit and vegetable rule change was well received by those who were aware of the change. These data suggest a number of important avenues for future research, including verifying these themes are important within a larger, representative sample of Arizona WIC participants, and exploring strategies to minimize barriers identified by participants, such as use of electronic benefits transfer-style cards (EBT). / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Nutrition 2013

abstract: Farmers' markets are a growing trend both in Arizona and the broader U.S., as many recognize them as desirable alternatives to the conventional food system. As icons of sustainability, farmers' markets are touted as providing many environmental, social, and economic benefits, but evidence is mounting that local food systems primarily serve the urban elite, with relatively few low-income or minority customers. However, the economic needs of the market and its vendors often conflict with those of consumers. While consumers require affordable food, farmers need to make a profit. How farmers' markets are designed and governed can significantly influence the extent to which they can meet these needs. However, very little research explores farmers' market design and governance, much less its capacity to influence financial success and participation for underprivileged consumers. The present study examined this research gap by addressing the following research question: How can farmers' markets be institutionally designed to increase the participation of underprivileged consumers while maintaining a financially viable market for local farmers? Through a comparative case study of six markets, this research explored the extent to which farmers' markets in Central Arizona currently serve the needs of farmer-vendors and underprivileged consumers. The findings suggest that while the markets serve as a substantial source of income for some vendors, participation by low-income and minority consumers remains low, and that much of this appears to be due to cultural barriers to access. Management structures, site characteristics, market layout, community programs, and staffing policies are key institutional design features, and the study explores how these can be leveraged to better meet the needs of the diverse participants while improving the markets' financial success. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Sustainability 2013

abstract: Research indicates that projected increases in global urban populations are not adequately addressed by current food production and planning. In the U.S., insufficient access to food, or the inability to access enough food for an active, healthy life affects nearly 15% of the population. In the face of these challenges, how are urban planners and other food system professionals planning for more resilient food systems? The purpose of this qualitative case study is to understand the planning and policy resources and food system approaches that might have the ability to strengthen food systems, and ultimately, urban resiliency. It proposes that by understanding food system planning in this context, planning approaches can be developed to strengthen urban food systems. The study uses the conceptual framework of urban planning for food, new community food systems, urban resiliency, and the theory of Panarchy as a model for urban planning and creation of new community food systems. Panarchy theory proposes that entrenched, non-diverse systems can change and adapt, and this study proposes that some U.S. cities are doing just that by planning for new community food systems. It studied 16 U.S. cities considered to be leaders in sustainability practices, and conducted semi-structured interviews with professionals in three of those cities: Portland, OR; San Francisco, CA; and Seattle, WA. The study found that these cities are using innovative methods in food system work, with professionals from many different departments and disciplines bringing interdisciplinary approaches to food planning and policy. Supported by strong executive leadership, these cities are creating progressive urban agriculture zoning policies and other food system initiatives, and using innovative educational programs and events to engage citizens at all socio-economic levels. Food system departments are relatively new, plans and policies among the cities are not consistent, and they are faced with limited resources to adequately track food system-related data. However they are still moving forward with programming to increase food access and improve their food systems. Food-system resiliency is recognized as an important goal, but cities are in varying stages of development for resiliency planning. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Environmental Design and Planning 2014

Dietary diversity is an indicator of the access dimensions of household food security as it relates to income, area, and seasonality. Dietary diversity refers to the number of different individual food items (food variety) and food groups (food group variety) consumed over a given reference period (Ruel, 2002:3). This may accurately predict individual nutrient adequacy and thus household food security. Inability to access enough food for a sustainable and healthy life indicates food insecurity. Food accessing refers to obtaining food for all household members at all times through own production, exchange and/or purchase. Food access depends on an adequate, stable, local food supply, and includes the availability and utilization of food (Steyn, Labadarios&Huskissom, 1999: 32). Lack of food resources often leads to food insecurity due to, among other, limited dietary diversity (different foods items or food groups) (Bellamy, 1998:24). Emphasis on dietary diversity can eliminate nutrient deficiency by increasing individual food and food group variety, thereby improving health. The aim of this research is to identify and describe the contribution of food access strategies to dietary diversity of farm worker households by identifying their dietary diversity level and its contribution to household food security. A cross-sectional research design was used to collect data from all the adult women (18-65 years) (N=21) responsible for the food in a complete community of farm worker households on a farm (Oranje farm) in the Free-State province of South Africa. A structured questionnaire was used to gather data on demographics, food access strategies with special reference to food production, purchasing, bartering, gathering and payment in kind, as well as dietary diversity. The two most common food accessing strategies used were purchasing (general dealers) and gathering (wild leaves, hunting, and fishing). Most people depended on own food production (86%) such as the cultivation of vegetables (spinach, green beans, pumpkin, turnip, tomatoes, cabbage) and fruit (apricots, peaches). Food bartering is seldom practiced (19%) due to customs and lack of knowledge. Food received as payment in kind (maize meal) was common (76%). The choice method of food access was buying (76%), gathering (19%) and producing (4%). People seldom ate outside their own home (76%), except children receiving food at school from the school feeding scheme (90%). Dietary diversity was limited for cereals consisting mainly of maize meal porridge, bread, vegetables such as wild leafy vegetables, tomatoes, onions, and potatoes, fruit (apples), unpasteurised milk, protein (eggs, chicken) and other (tea, sugar, oil, curry powder). The mean for the food variety score of the 109 food items per day varied from 23.0 to 27.9 between five seasons which relates to three to four different food items per day. Food variety score were thus lower in all the seasons when considering nutritious food. The food group diversity score was also calculated over nine nutritious food groups used over seven days. The food group diversity scores was high in almost all the seasons. The mean food group diversity score of the nine food groups varied from 7.9 to 8.8 between five seasons which relates to one and almost two food groups per day. Although most food groups were consumed in seven days, resulting in “high” dietary diversity, the numbers of food items (individual food variety) eaten within the various food groups was low. This study showed that it was possible to predict household food security of household members by simply calculating the food variety score and food group diversity score of a household as an indication of dietary diversity. The result revealed which households was food secure on insecure, and provided an overall picture of the dietary diversity of the whole community. Overall this results indicated that limited food access strategies were utilized or that many of the strategies were not used optimally, resulting in limited dietary diversity, ultimately affecting the household food security status of farm worker households. This information can be used to formulate strategies and develop interventions to increase the number of food access strategies utilized and to food improve utilization thereof in order to improve dietary diversity and household security. / Dissertation (MConsSci (General))--University of Pretoria, 2008. / Consumer Science / unrestricted

No description available.

This project examines food systems and hunger in relation to city planning, and results in a draft strategic plan to address the food security and nutritional needs of San Luis Obispo County’s most vulnerable residents. This Draft Plan is submitted to the Food Bank Coalition of San Luis Obispo County as part of the Hunger-Free Community Project. The Food Bank Coalition of San Luis Obispo County was the lead agency of a USDA Hunger-Free Communities planning grant awarded in 2011. With this grant, the Food Bank convened a group of stakeholders to form the San Luis Obispo County Food System Coalition, and worked with community partners to conduct three studies on existing food resources, food security, and nutritional need in San Luis Obispo County. The outcome of this project is a draft of the third component of the grant – the creation of a strategic plan to address hunger and improve nutrition in San Luis Obispo County. San Luis Obispo County is a rural region rich in agricultural production, but hunger is a growing problem in the County indicating deficiencies in the local food system. One in six residents do not know where their next meal will come from. A high cost of living coupled with many low-wage jobs leaves many residents with few financial resources from which to provide food and other basic necessities. This project reviewed current professional and academic literature on food systems, hunger, and planning; conducted a case study analysis on existing hunger plans; compiled a background report on the existing hunger situation and community needs in the County; and worked with the San Luis Obispo County Food System Coalition to create the Draft Hunger-Free Community Plan for San Luis Obispo County. The Draft Plan and Background Report are organized into five themes: Food Access, Nutrition & Hunger, Local Agriculture, Community Resources and the SLO County Food System Coalition. As this plan is only a draft, the next steps that need to be taken before final adoption of the plan are outlined. This plan is a community plan; it will require the work and support of many organizations and agencies to effectively end hunger in the County.

Increasing the number of farmers’ markets and implementing Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) systems for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) at more farmers’ markets have been suggested as strategies to overcome food access issues, but little is known about their availability in the rural South. This study examines differences in availability of farmers’ markets and SNAP/EBT at markets by county-level rural/urban classification, percentage poverty, percentage racial/ethnic minority, and percentage obese residents in North Carolina counties. Data were collected using a cross-sectional survey. Though results related to rurality and economic status are mixed, regression analyses indicate that the percentage of African American residents is inversely associated with the number of markets and number of markets that accept EBT. Results suggest that access to farmers’ markets varies in North Carolina, and additional research is needed to determine whether this impacts obesity.