In 2020, the Walmart Foundation awarded grants to 11 community-based projects offering innovative approaches to supporting healthy food access. The grants focused on initiatives that improve access to fresh foods for regions and populations experiencing disproportionately high rates of food insecurity. The Cabarrus Health Alliance, one of the 11 grantees, focused on reducing food insecurity and decision fatigue among parents by offering low-cost healthy, kid-friendly dinners during child care pick-up at two child care centers in Cabarrus County, North Carolina.

Key features of the initiative included developing and offering grab-and-go cooked meals at local child care centers for parents to purchase. Cabarrus Health Alliance conducted preprogram implementation interviews with parents to gauge interest and meal acquisition behaviors to inform the program structure and meal variety. We found that the program’s meal kit structure experimented with an innovative model for addressing food insecurity among families with children and that partnering with daycare centers could be a strategy to reach busy parents.