REAL COST OF A HEALTHY DIET

The primary goal of the Real Cost of a Healthy Diet project is to determine whether residents in three primarily low-income Boston communities who receive Food Stamps and other assistance program benefits can afford a healthy diet, given the availability and prices of foods in large, medium, and small food markets in their local neighborhood.

Project Objectives
  1. To determine the cost and availability of the TFP market basket in low-income areas of Boston.
  2. To determine the cost and availability of a modified, healthier market basket in low-income areas of Boston.
  3. To compare food costs with nutrition assistance program benefits received by low-incomeBoston households.
Project Methods
  • Three Boston neighborhoods were identified for study: South Dorchester, Mattapan, and the South End (see Appendix for neighborhood profiles). Many residents in certain parts of these communities rely on assistance program benefits to supplement their food budgets.
  • Nine stores, one of each size per neighborhood, were identified by key informants for food price survey: three small convenience stores/bodegas, three medium-size markets, and three large grocery stores (from the same chain supermarket).
  • Project nutritionists designed a healthier diet by carefully modifying the TFP menu and recipes where possible to conform to the most recent nutrition guidelines from the American Heart Association (AHA) and the USDA/DHHS.35,38 (Table 1) All changes that were made to the TFP to create a healthier diet were calculated to maintain overall caloric equivalence between the two diets. (Table 2)
  • Shopping lists were created, including all food items for the USDA TFP market basket for a family of four (two adults and two school-age children), and the alternative items chosen to be included in the modified, healthier diet.
  • Collection of food price data occurred in May 2004 and August 2004, in accordance with the protocol outlined in the USDA Community Food Security Assessment Toolkit.39 Interns from the Food Project, a community-based organization of youth and adults partnering to create social change through sustainable agriculture, participated in data collection.