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When it comes to eating fruits and vegetables, the average U.S. diet falls short of Federal recommendations. According to the 2020–2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, about 90 percent of the U.S. population does not meet the recommendation for vegetables and 80 percent consumes too little fruit. There are many factors that could influence food choices, including taste, convenience, and the link between diet and health. For lower income households, affordability can also be a factor.

ERS researchers calculated the average cost to consume 157 fresh and processed fruits and vegetables by adjusting for inedible parts and losses that may occur in cooking. A greater share of vegetables (77 percent) than fruits (47 percent) cost less than 80 cents per cup equivalent.

Given that most Americans do not consume enough whole grains to satisfy Federal dietary recommendations, in 2009, the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture (USDA) altered its Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) by adding 100-percent whole-wheat bread (and other whole-grain options like brown rice) to food packages for children and pregnant or breastfeeding women. Published research suggests that participant diet quality has likely improved, but study results are mixed. Other research has explored the availability and cost of whole-grain products in the WIC-allowed, 1-pound (16-ounce) package size at retail stores. In 2014, USDA asked the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) to convene a committee of experts to conduct an independent, comprehensive scientific review of WIC food packages and recommend cost-neutral changes in line with the nutritional status and food and nutrition needs of the WIC-eligible population. In 2017, that committee recommended a number of changes to participants’ food assistance benefits. These include offering bread and other whole-grain products in more standard package sizes. Concurrent to NASEM’s review of the WIC food package, the Agricultural Act of 2014 required the Dietary Guidelines for Americans to expand to include infants and toddlers from birth to 2 years, as well as women who are pregnant, beginning with the 2020 edition. USDA will consider changes to the WIC food packages once this work is complete. In this study, we use a combination of store- and household-level purchase data to revisit some key questions about WIC participants’ whole-grain benefits. We focus on bread in a case study of the products that may be purchased with these benefits., Store-level purchase data from Information Resources, Inc. (IRI) were used to examine the price and sales volume of 100 percent whole-wheat bread, and household-level data from the National Household Food Acquisition and Purchase Survey (FoodAPS) were used to examine the propensity of WIC households to purchase whole-grain breads. In this report, the term “100 percent whole wheat” is used when referring specifically to bread of this type, and the term “whole grain” is used elsewhere in the report. A variety of statistical techniques were used in the analysis, including summary statistics and T-tests for differences between group means. To capture the full association between WIC participation and whole-grain purchases among households, ERS would need to include separate analyses for all relevant whole-grain product types, which is beyond the scope of our study and data.

Food away from home (FAFH) has become increasingly integral to the American diet. In 2010, the share of Americans’ food budget for FAFH—reaching 50 percent (up from 41 percent in 1984)—surpassed the share for food at home (FAH) for the first time. Likewise, Americans’ share of energy intake from FAFH rose from 17 percent in 1977-78 to 34 percent in 2011-12, with differences in growth across types of FAFH (e.g., full- and quick-service restaurant foods, school meals, etc.). Along with the demand for FAFH, availability of FAFH has also increased, with much of the growth in recent years attributable to quick-service restaurants. The growing presence of FAFH in Americans’ diets reflects changes in consumer demand and producer behavior and affects the health and nutrition of individuals over time. This report takes a comprehensive look at the role of FAFH in American diets, exploring nutritional composition of FAFH and key Federal programs that may influence FAFH. The report also discusses how FAFH choices and availability relate to diet quality, income, age, and other socioeconomic factors.

Farm-to-school programs began in the 1990s and have been encouraged by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) through grant funding, technical assistance, and changes to school meal procurement regulations. In 2012, USDA’s Farm to School Program was formally established to improve access to local foods in eligible schools. Today, more than 4 in 10 school districts report serving local foods or implementing other farm-to-school activities. To examine progress toward USDA’s goal of daily availability of locally produced foods for all students and to identify potential targets for technical assistance, this report uses data from the 2013 Farm to School Census to measure the prevalence of school districts that serve local food daily and the characteristics of those districts.

Many consumers may perceive fruit and vegetable recommendations in USDA's Dietary Guidelines for Americans as too expensive. ERS illustrates how a family of four can meet these recommendations on a limited budget.

USDA’s Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) is the Nation’s third-largest food and nutrition assistance program. WIC partici - pants receive Food Instruments they can exchange for foods like infant formula, milk, fruit juice, whole-grain bread, and cold cereal at authorized retail stores. Since partici - pants incur no out-of-pocket costs when purchasing WIC foods, they may be less sensitive to prices when choosing among allowed food items. In this study, we analyze household purchases of cold cereals. Findings show that WIC households buy less costly cereals than non-WIC households, all else constant, when paying out of pocket. Not surprisingly, they purchase with relatively less regard to price when using their WIC benefits, which may increase the program’s food costs. Findings also suggest that some restrictions imposed by WIC State agencies on brands and package sizes may help contain program costs. However, it may also be possible to develop incentives that encourage participants to purchase lower cost products without the negative impact that restrictions may have on participant satisfaction and program participation.

This report provides the latest estimates by USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS) on the amount and value of food loss in the United States. These estimates are for more than 200 individual foods using ERS’s Loss-Adjusted Food Availability data. In 2010, an estimated 31 percent or 133 billion pounds of the 430 billion pounds of food produced was not available for human consumption at the retail and consumer levels. This amount of loss totaled an estimated $161.6 billion, as purchased at retail prices. For the first time, ERS estimates of the calories associated with food loss are presented in this report. An estimated 141 trillion calories per year, or 1,249 calories per capita per day, in the food supply in 2010 went uneaten. The top three food groups in terms of share of total value of food loss are meat, poultry, and fish (30 percent); vegetables (19 percent); and dairy products (17 percent). The report also provides a brief discussion of the economic issues behind postharvest food loss.

Restaurant foods are typically higher in calories than meals consumed at home. Menu labeling regulations by the U.S. Food and Drug and Administration aim to inform consumers about the calorie content of menu items. However, some consumers may already be making at least partially informed decisions. For example, as a rule of thumb, a consumer may be aware that deep-fried foods are higher in calories. He or she may also know to avoid side dishes like French fries and onion rings. Indeed, it has been argued that some consumers can already identify which foods best satisfy their needs and wants and gain little new information from menu labeling. In this study, following research in marketing science and behavioral economics, we assume that a representative consumer employs rules-of-thumb nutrition knowledge to judge the calorie content of restaurant foods when explicit information is unavailable. We then investigate whether rules of thumb accurately predict the calorie content of 361 meals sold by 2 major fast-food restaurants and 5,752 meals sold by 5 major full-service restaurants. Results show that some simple rules of thumb are fairly reliable predictors of actual calorie content. They and other information available at the point of sale also explain about half of the total variation in calories in restaurant foods. Nonetheless, we find that menu labeling still imparts substantial new information. In particular, it is likely that many Americans are already able to make crude choices between high- and low-calorie foods, based on their pre-existing understandings of nutrition. Menu labeling allows them to make finer adjustments in their food choices and behavior, if they wish to.

Children today are consuming close to 200 more calories a day from snacks than they did in the 1970s. Replacing a calorie-dense snack food with a fruit or vegetable could reduce calorie intake and improve diet quality. Swapping common snack foods with a ½-cup serving of fruits or vegetables can be done without compromising a household’s food budget.

Federal dietary guidance advises Americans to consume more vegetables and fruits because most Americans do not consume the recommended quantities or variety. Food prices, along with taste, convenience, income, and awareness of the link between diet and health, shape food choices. We used 2008 Nielsen Homescan data to estimate the average price at retail stores of a pound and an edible cup equivalent (or, for juices, a pint and an edible cup equivalent) of 153 commonly consumed fresh and processed fruits and vegetables. We found that average prices ranged from less than 20 cents per edible cup equivalent to more than $2 per edible cup equivalent. We also found that, in 2008, an adult on a 2,000- calorie diet could satisfy recommendations for vegetable and fruit consumption in the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (amounts and variety) at an average price of $2 to $2.50 per day, or approximately 50 cents per edible cup equivalent.