Headline

Details implementation guidance for a rural produce prescription program, covering funding and sustainability, partnerships, design, and evaluation.

Context

Produce prescription programs have been shown to support food security and increase healthy food access for individuals with low-income and/or those with diet-related health conditions. Typically, providers refer patients to these programs, where they receive vouchers or debit cards to buy fruits and vegetables. This toolkit is specifically designed for rural areas that face unique healthy food-related challenges, such as limited transportation, fewer food retail options, restricted access to healthy foods, and limited internet connectivity.

About this Tool

This toolkit can help guide those planning and operating produce prescription programs in rural areas.

The toolkit is broken up into four topics

• Program Funding and Sustainability: Provides various pathways for rural produce prescription programs to find sustainable funding, offering examples of funders and related resources.
• Establishing and Managing Partnerships: Outlines the benefits of conducting a community assessment in the context of establishing a produce prescription program, including links to validated assessment tools and checklists for understanding different partnership types.
• Program Design: Provides considerations for establishing a produce prescription program, including determining program dose, length, and frequency, as well as tips for addressing common program challenges.   
• Program Evaluation: Offers guidance on methods for evaluating these programs, including practical examples of how to pull data, assess claims, and improve a program based on participant surveys.

In addition to the topics outlined above, this toolkit offers implementation tools, including a participant tracking spreadsheet, sample enrollment form, voucher drop off receipt form, and unused voucher form.

Takeaways

This guide provides practical tools for rural communities aiming to implement produce prescription programs. It considers the unique challenges rural areas face and offers practical solutions to address them.