West Virginia continues to post among the nation’s highest food-insecurity rates despite a dense landscape of public assistance programs and energetic community initiatives. The policy environment is rapidly shifting: nutrition incentives such as SNAP Stretch have stabilized and entered the state budget; universal school meals have expanded through Community Eligibility Provision; Farm to School and Food-is-Medicine coalitions are scaling; pandemic-era programs reorganized delivery systems; and new state and federal actions—from retail consolidation and SNAP rule changes to additive bans and the Perry Posey Fund—are reshaping food environments.
Nutrition Futures in West Virginia will advance a mixed-methods, participatory action research agenda to:
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track how federal and state policy changes influence household food access and local markets;
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evaluate the performance and equity of incentives, produce prescriptions, universal school meals, and Farm to School under varying retail conditions;
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assess governance options for statewide coordination and rights-based approaches; and
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strengthen CRC’s information networks and pedagogical tools that translate evidence into action.
Results will equip agencies, advocates, and communities to shape just and resilient nutrition futures in WV and beyond.