(P11-053-25) A Study Protocol for Co-Designing a Pilot Action Plan to Improve the Food Environment With Stakeholders in a Predominantly Asian American Community

Objectives: Asian Americans face high risks for diet-related diseases, including type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. Interventions targeting food environment can improve their diet quality and overall nutritional wellbeing. This study aims to:

- Identify intervention priorities in the food environment of an Asian American community

- Co-design a culturally tailored pilot action plan with community stakeholders

Methods: This study employs a community-based participatory research approach to engage community members in designing tailored interventions to improve their food environment based on local knowledge and values.

A predominantly Asian community in the U.S. ( >60% population identified as Asian) will be chosen based on its demographic diversity, food environment quality, and study feasibility. A community research council (CRC) will be recruited via purposive and snowball sampling, including 15 - 25 members with diverse roles (e.g., community leaders, local authorities, and food business owners or staff).

The study will run from August 2025 to December 2026, following three stages:

1. Formative evaluation: Community members will complete an adapted Nutritional Environment Measures Survey – Perceived (NEMS-P), which identifies their perceived intervention priorities in the food environment. Concurrently, neighborhood food outlets will be examined via direct observations for contextual insights (e.g., food availability, affordability, and quality).

2. Focus group discussions: CRC members will discuss their relevant experiences based on their unique positionalities and propose potential strategies to address the identified issues from formative evaluation.

3. Plan development: A pilot action plan draft to improve the food environment will be developed using strategies obtained from CRC discussions. CRC members will provide feedback on this draft during a community workshop to refine the plan.

Results: N/A

Conclusions: The study aims to develop a culturally tailored action plan to improve food environment in a predominantly Asian community in the U.S. Such plan can be adapted for other similar communities to enhance the health outcomes of Asian Americans.

Funding Sources: HT is funded by the Vingroup Science and Technology Scholarship Program for Overseas Study for Master’s and Doctoral Degrees and George G. Graham Travel Scholarship.