Scaling up the SNAP-ED Toolkit Interventions to Improve Fruit and Vegetable Consumption across Counties in Georgia: An Agent-Based Model

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)-Ed Toolkit includes a set of interventions to increase the fruit and vegetable (FV) consumption of SNAP-eligible households on a limited budget. It is unclear how the interventions affect dietary choices in local populations. This study combines detailed local data with an agent-based model (ABM) to assess the potential cost-effectiveness of scaling up the SNAP-Ed Toolkit interventions in 13 selected metro-Atlanta counties in Georgia. The ABM drew insights from prior research on healthy eating choices and was empirically validated. The model predicted the actual FV consumption levels (mathrm{R}^{2}=0.951, mathrm{P} < 0.001). If the interventions could successfully enhance community healthy eating norms by 10% and 20%, they would significantly increase FV consumption. The cost per year to bring one person to consume at least two servings of FV daily) was 23 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 18-29), and 10 (95% CI: 9-12) in each scenario. © 2021 SCS.