Food sovereignty, health, and produce prescription programs

• Published in: Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development
• Main Authors: Nadine Budd Nugent, Ronit Ridberg, Hollyanne Fricke, Carmen Byker Shanks, Sarah Stotz, Amber Jones Chung, Sonya Shin, Amy Yaroch, Melissa Akers, Roger Lowe, Carmen George, Kymie Thomas, Hilary Seligman
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Thomas A. Lyson Center for Civic Agriculture and Food Systems 2022
• Subjects: Food Sovereignty; Food Security; Food Access; Nutrition Assistance; Produce Prescription; GusNIP; demo; socio; Yukon; Kuskokwim; Alaska
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.5304/jafscd.2022.113.014; https://doaj.org/article/288ba08cb3da4b99a2568702487b7e8d

Structural inequities contribute to food systems in which tribal communities in the U.S. are more likely to experience barriers to healthy food access, including financial barriers, lack of geographic proximity, or both. Food sovereignty movements improve food access by shifting power to local people to build food systems that support cultural, social, economic, and environmental needs. Finan­cial incentive programs, including produce pre­scription programs, have emerged as a promising intervention to improve food access and support food sovereignty. This case study describes the implementation of two federally funded produce prescription programs (Produce Prescription Pro­jects or PPR) under the U.S. Department of Agri­culture (USDA) Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incen­tive Program (GusNIP) in two rural tribal communities: the Yukon Kuskokwim Delta region in Alaska, and the Navajo Nation, which spans parts of New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah. We illus­trate how PPR can be tailored to accommodate local and diverse cultures, strengthen community power, and be uniquely suited for the challenges of increasing access to nutritious food in rural tribal communities. We also highlight recommendations and future areas of research that may be useful for other rural tribal communities implementing PPR.