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A University at Buffalo randomized study found that fresh food delivered to food-insecure older adults was prepared and consumed at a higher rate than food accessed through vouchers at markets. Redemption was 89.2% in both delivery groups, compared with 28.3% in the voucher group. The small, 12-week study does not establish whether the approach will have the same results in larger or different populations.
A 12-week randomized study by University at Buffalo researchers found that food-insecure older adults prepared and consumed fresh produce more often when it was delivered to their homes than when they had to collect it using market vouchers. Redemption reached 89.2% in both delivery groups, compared with 28.3% among participants offered vouchers, suggesting that delivery may address practical barriers to food prescription programs.
The study included 67 adults, most of them African American and over 65, recruited through primary care clinics at Erie County Medical Center in Buffalo. Participants were randomly assigned to one of two home-delivery programs or a standard-of-care voucher group. The study was published in Frontiers in Public Health in 2026.
One delivery group received weekly boxes of fresh produce, with the option to customize the contents. The other received meal kits containing produce and ingredients for three meals, with five to six kit options available each week. Participants in the comparison group received vouchers redeemable at the hospital’s mobile market or selected FeedMore Western New York markets.
Researchers defined redemption as preparation and consumption of the delivered produce. In each delivery arm, that rate was 89.2%; in the voucher group, it was 28.3%. Participants rated both delivery programs above 9 out of 10 and said they would recommend them. The meal kits did not increase produce use compared with produce boxes, although researchers said the greater quantity of food helped improve food security.
Delivery Removes Market Access Barriers
The gap between the delivery and voucher groups points to a possible design issue for food prescriptions: providing financial access to food may not be enough if participants still need to travel to collect it. University at Buffalo researcher Lucia A. Leone said transportation limitations and discomfort about being seen seeking assistance can make market-based redemption difficult. Some redemption sites operate from food pantries, which participants may find stigmatizing.
Home delivery could reduce those obstacles by making receipt of food the default rather than requiring a separate trip. The study also suggests that meal kits may not be necessary to increase use among older adults already comfortable preparing produce. However, the findings measure participation and food use in a small, short-term program; they do not by themselves show long-term health effects or establish the cost and feasibility of scaling delivery.
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How the Three Programs Compared
Food prescription programs provide free or subsidized foods, often fruits and vegetables, to people experiencing food insecurity. The Medical Xpress report says previous research found that 9% to 18% of recipients used produce vouchers. That figure is reported as prior research, not as the outcome of this Buffalo study; the study’s own voucher group had a 28.3% redemption rate.
Leone and colleagues set out to compare delivery options with the local standard approach of vouchers redeemable at markets. The two home-delivery arms shared a key feature: participants did not have to take an additional action to redeem the food, though produce-box recipients could customize their order. The study team partnered with Buffalo-based FreshFix for delivery. The researchers said the ability to customize may have contributed to the program’s performance, but the study did not isolate the effect of customization from the effect of delivery.
“The problem historically with food prescription programs is that people get the vouchers but don’t redeem them.”
— Lucia A. Leone, corresponding author and University at Buffalo associate professor
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Limits of the Buffalo Study
The study involved 67 participants at one Buffalo health system and lasted 12 weeks. The source does not provide enough detail to determine whether the redemption difference would persist over a longer period, apply to other regions, or hold for older adults with different needs. It also does not report a direct comparison of program costs or measure long-term health outcomes.
Researchers said redemption did not reach 100% partly because some participants were away or felt they already had enough food. The study also cannot determine whether delivery alone, customization, the delivery experience, or a combination of factors produced the higher rate. The researchers noted that larger programs, including those offered through Medicaid, may find it harder to tailor food deliveries to specific groups.
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Researchers Plan a Family Study
Leone and colleagues plan to conduct a similar study with a population they describe as more challenging to serve: food-insecure families enrolled in Medicaid with children ages 2 to 6. The research will be conducted with local pediatric practices. The source does not give a start date or report results from that planned study.
The next study could test whether delivery and customization are workable for families with young children, whose food needs and daily routines differ from those of the older adults in the Buffalo trial. Until those findings are available, the current results support further testing of home-delivery models rather than a conclusion that they will work equally well in every program or population.
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Key Questions
What did the study find?
Among 67 food-insecure older adults, 89.2% of produce was prepared and consumed in each home-delivery group, compared with 28.3% in the voucher group.
Did meal kits work better than produce boxes?
No difference in produce redemption was reported between the two delivery groups. The study found that adding meal kits did not increase use of the produce compared with delivering produce alone.
Who took part in the research?
The trial included 67 adults, mostly African American and over 65, recruited through primary care clinics at Erie County Medical Center in Buffalo. Participants had indicated that they had experienced food insecurity at times.
Does the study prove home delivery improves health?
No. It compared program participation and produce use over 12 weeks. The report does not establish long-term health effects or show whether the results would be replicated in larger programs.
What research is planned next?
The researchers plan a similar study with Medicaid-enrolled families experiencing food insecurity and children ages 2 to 6, working with local pediatric practices. No results or start date were provided in the report.
Source: rss
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