(P05-011-25) Improving Awareness and Healthy Eating: Evaluation of Double Up Food Bucks Marketing Strategies, Tactics, and Tools in New Mexico

Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate perceptions of the New Mexico Double Up Food Bucks (DUFB) program marketing strategies, tactics, and tools and impacts of DUFB on dietary intake among adult SNAP participants in New Mexico.

Methods: An online statewide survey of SNAP participants who are all automatically eligible for DUFB in New Mexico was used to evaluate the effectiveness of 10 marketing tactics and tools including flyers, handouts, posters, local food guide, radio ads, bus ad, billboard, social media posts, DUFB website, and text messages and dietary intake changes among DUFB participants. Sociodemographic characteristics, perspectives of marketing tools, and behavior changes of the participants were evaluated using SAS.

Results: A total of 1,061 New Mexico SNAP participants provided valid responses to the survey; of those, 65% were aware of DUFB and 40% had ever participated in DUFB. Most respondents ( >71%) agreed or strongly agreed each of the 10 marketing tools would encourage them to participate in DUFB, and the highest-ranking tools were radio ads (95%), website (84%), and billboard ads (81%). In addition, survey participants that had ever participated in DUFB (n=421, 40%) reported that farmers’ market signage (flyers and poster) (26%) and text messages (11%) were how they first learned about the DUFB program. The most common barrier reported by SNAP participants who had never used DUFB was that they did not know about DUFB (57%). Among all DUFB participants, more than 70% reported that their consumption and ability to afford fruits and vegetables had increased due to DUFB. Nearly three-fourths (74%) reported an increase in trying new fruits and vegetables and an increase in diet quality due to participating in DUFB. However, even though some SNAP participants know about DUFB, they may not fully understand benefits and/or logistics of participating, including eligible items that can be purchased with DUFB.

Conclusions: Marketing tactics and tools such as radio ads, DUFB website, billboard ads, local food guides, social media posts and videos, and text messages appear to be the most favorable ways to increase the awareness of the DUFB program among SNAP participants in New Mexico. DUFB participants reported that the program effectively improved their fruit and vegetables intake.

Funding Sources: New Mexico Farmers’ Marketing Association and University of New Mexico