Can free produce and grocery cards get kids to eat better?
NCT ID NCT06010784
First seen Sep 21, 2026 · Last updated Sep 21, 2026
Summary
Researchers at the University of Texas at Austin are testing whether adding family food support to an afterschool program helps elementary school children eat more fruits and vegetables and improve their overall diet. Families in the support group receive weekly boxes of produce, grocery store gift cards, recipes, and text-message tips. The children attend an afterschool program focused on physical activity and healthy eating. The trial compares children who get the extra family support with those who attend the afterschool program alone.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Family support: weekly produce boxes, grocery store gift cards, recipes, and text-message tips, added to an afterschool program for physical activity and healthy eating
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could give schools and community programs a practical way to help children from low-income families eat more fruits and vegetables.
- What could go wrong
- The trial is small and runs in one city, so results may not apply elsewhere. Families may not use the produce or gift cards as intended, and diet changes can be hard to measure accurately.
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Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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119 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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Sep 2023
- Finished
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Mar 2024
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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5 to 11 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Index guardian must be at least 18 years old * Child must be enrolled in grade 1 to 5 (aged approx. 6-11 y-o) for the 2023-2024 school year * Child must be enrolled in the BGCAA after-school program at the beginning of the 2023-24 fall semester at one of the 11 sites where BGCAA offers after-school program to elementary school-aged children * Index parent must be able to speak English and/or Spanish Exclusion Criteria: * Already having a sibling enrolled in the study * Child having serious food allergies or dietary restrictions associated with produce products
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As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Boys & Girls Clubs of Austin
Austin, Texas, 78723, United States