Grant: Planning and Dissemination Grant - Institute Community Support

Food insecurity and suboptimal diet are tandem public health concerns in urban settings across Canada. Food prescription programs, in which healthcare providers prescribe and link patients with sources of community food support, are an innovative approach to addressing food insecurity and improving nutritional health. This research proposal builds on the preliminary success of a fresh food prescription (FFRx) project in the Wellington-Guelph-Dufferin region of Ontario. It aims to analyze and disseminate research findings, strengthen intersectoral partnerships, and set an agenda for an Ontario-wide network to initiate a collaborative research project evaluating the effectiveness of fresh food prescriptions. Furthermore, this project addresses health equity by improving food security and health among low-income, urban residents. Specific objectives are to: (1) develop and disseminate outputs from the FFRx project ; (2) disseminate research findings from the FFRx project to multiple local stakeholders in the Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph region through a knowledge dissemination workshop; and (3) establish an Ontario-wide food prescription Community of Practice network and plan for a new research initiative through an agenda-setting meeting.