Skip to Main Content
HBS Home
  • About
  • Academic Programs
  • Alumni
  • Faculty & Research
  • Baker Library
  • Giving
  • Harvard Business Review
  • Initiatives
  • News
  • Recruit
  • Map / Directions
Faculty & Research
  • Faculty
  • Research
  • Featured Topics
  • Academic Units
  • …→
  • Harvard Business School→
  • Faculty & Research→
Publications
Publications
  • 2020
  • Working Paper

Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Consumption: The Impact of Access and Value

By: Retsef Levi, Elisabeth Paulson and Georgia Perakis
  • Format:Print
  • | Language:English
ShareBar

Abstract

The goal of this paper is to leverage household-level data to improve food-related policies aimed at increasing the consumption of fruits and vegetables (FVs) among low-income households. Currently, several interventions target areas where residents have limited physical access to grocery stores, many focusing directly on increasing their access to healthy food. However, despite growing attention being placed on access at both federal and local levels, there is surprisingly little agreement about the efficacy of these interventions, due in part to the observational nature of most data, and lack of understanding of causal mechanisms and effect heterogeneity. The paper leverages the USDA’s FoodAPS dataset, employing the technique of matching to estimate the effect of food stamp recipient households’ access to grocery stores and value of nutrition—the extent to which a household values healthy eating—on FV spending. The analysis finds that access impacts a household’s FV spending by affecting shopping frequency, but only among households with a low value of nutrition and at distances of less than 1 mile. Value of nutrition impacts FV spending through both changes in food choices and shopping frequency, primarily among households with poor access. These findings can be used to inform more targeted and effective policy interventions.

Keywords

Food Deserts; Food Access; Food Policy; Causal Inference; Food; Nutrition; Poverty; Government Administration

Citation

Levi, Retsef, Elisabeth Paulson, and Georgia Perakis. "Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Consumption: The Impact of Access and Value." MIT Sloan Research Paper, No. 5389-18, October 2020.
  • SSRN
  • Read Now

About The Author

Elisabeth C. Paulson

Technology and Operations Management
→More Publications

More from the Authors

    • 2022
    • Faculty Research

    Outcome-Driven Dynamic Refugee Assignment with Allocation Balancing

    By: Kirk Bansak and Elisabeth Paulson
    • Faculty Research

    Group Fairness in Dynamic Refugee Assignment

    By: Daniel Freund, Thodoris Lykouris, Elisabeth Paulson, Bradley Sturt and Wentao Weng
    • 2021
    • Naval Research Logistics Quarterly

    Public Health Risks Arising from Food Supply Chains: Challenges and Opportunities

    By: Lu Chen, Donovan Guittieres, Retsef Levi, Elisabeth Paulson, Georgia Perakis, Nicholas Renegar and Stacy Springs
More from the Authors
  • Outcome-Driven Dynamic Refugee Assignment with Allocation Balancing By: Kirk Bansak and Elisabeth Paulson
  • Group Fairness in Dynamic Refugee Assignment By: Daniel Freund, Thodoris Lykouris, Elisabeth Paulson, Bradley Sturt and Wentao Weng
  • Public Health Risks Arising from Food Supply Chains: Challenges and Opportunities By: Lu Chen, Donovan Guittieres, Retsef Levi, Elisabeth Paulson, Georgia Perakis, Nicholas Renegar and Stacy Springs
ǁ
Campus Map
Harvard Business School
Soldiers Field
Boston, MA 02163
→Map & Directions
→More Contact Information
  • Make a Gift
  • Site Map
  • Jobs
  • Harvard University
  • Trademarks
  • Policies
  • Accessibility
  • Digital Accessibility
Copyright © President & Fellows of Harvard College