Eat Well, Be Well Program Expands Healthy Food For Rhode Islanders

Guests: 

Dr. Amy Nunn, CEO, Rhode Island Public Health Institute

Chris Buchanan Director of Public Affairs and State and Local Government Relations with Walmart Stores, Inc

In this episode, we explore the innovative Eat Well, Be Well program in Rhode Island, which successfully leverages public-private partnerships to promote healthy eating among SNAP recipients. Discover how automating incentives at checkout can increase fruit and vegetable consumption, and the potential for these strategies to scale into other areas of health and wellbeing.

Main Topics:

• The origin and goals of the Eat Well, Be Well initiative
• How the program doubles the value of SNAP benefits for produce in retail locations
• The seamless, no-signup approach that simplifies access to healthy foods
• The role of technology in efficient program administration
• Data and impact: how the program benefits thousands of Rhode Islanders
• Strategies for scaling similar incentive models to broader health behaviors
• Future expansion possibilities beyond produce, including active lifestyles
• The importance of cross-sector collaboration in shaping healthier communities

Timestamps:
00:00 - Introduction to the episode and guests
00:16 - Guest introductions: Chris Buchanan and Dr. Amy Nunn
01:04 - The purpose and history of the Eat Well, Be Well program
01:33 - How the program supports affordability of healthy foods for SNAP recipients
02:10 - Program funding sources and extension through COVID relief dollars
02:55 - Walmart’s involvement: why they joined the pilot program
03:27 - Making healthy shopping affordable and practical
03:57 - Seamless incentive application at checkout
05:11 - Behind the scenes logistics of integrating the program into retailer systems
06:52 - Advice for retailers interested in adopting similar models
09:00 - Evaluation results and program impact on Rhode Island households
09:36 - Reaching vulnerable populations: children and the elderly
11:43 - The potential for expanding incentives to other health behaviors and products
12:19 - The concept of behavioral economics in promoting healthy choices
13:21 - The possibility of broader incentive programs across health and activity sectors
15:00 - Creative ideas for encouraging physical activity through retail and community efforts
16:18 - The importance of partnership among government, private sector, and public health
16:35 - The scalability of incentive programs and future opportunities
17:21 - Final thoughts on collaborative efforts driving community health improvements
18:07 - Closing remarks

Transcript

Bill Bartholomew 0:00

All right, welcome into Bartholomew Town. I'm Bill Bartholomew. We continue to follow up on a program that has um we we've talked about, and I would recommend anybody who's interested, just search Eat Well, Be Well, wherever you're listening right now, you'll find previous episodes on this topic. But before we get into our discussion, you'll recognize one of our voices today, that's for sure. But we have someone who has not been on the show before. So, Chris, if you want to introduce yourself and we'll associate the voice with the human, and then Dr. Nunn.

SPEAKER_01 0:25

Yeah, absolutely. Happy to be here. And it's uh my name is Chris Buchanan, and I'm with Walmart. I do uh director of public affairs and government relations with Walmart. I covered the uh sixth state New England region.

Bill Bartholomew 0:37

Awesome. And uh Dr. Amy Nunn, uh a voice familiar to many on this and other broadcasts, but if you want to introduce yourself as well for those who may not be familiar.

SPEAKER_00 0:46

Good morning. I'm Amy Nunn and I am CEO of the Rhode Island Public Health Institute.

Bill Bartholomew 0:52

All right, let's talk about eat well, be well and what it is. What's the history of this program and how it came to be and why it became uh a a priority for you, Dr. Nunn, as a public health leader?

SPEAKER_00 1:03

Well, it's important for us to have ways to help people live their healthiest lives and to eat healthy diets. As everybody knows, you know, when when you go to the grocery store, food has gotten increasingly more expensive and sometimes fruits and vegetables are out of reach for uh people um with limited means. And so this program is designed to promote healthy eating among people who use SNAP. So SNAP is like uh uh it's a federal program that's designed to alleviate hunger. It's called the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. And we piloted a program um called Eat Well Be Well that doubles the value of the dollar when people buy fresh produce with their SNAP benefits. It's essentially the uh a creative way to make eating healthy, easy and affordable for many Rhode Islanders.

Bill Bartholomew 2:09

And this dates back to or the original concept funded in 2022, an $11.5 million appropriation that came from the American Rescue Plan DAX. So in other words, COVID dollars that funded this, but it's now been extended a $4.1 million appropriation in the fiscal year 27 budget. There's going to be an event later today uh that will include leaders from uh the Senate and the House as well as um those who advocated and worked on this project. The program continues to be active in 36 participating retail locations, including Stop and Shop at Walmart locations and the West African Superstore in South Providence. So looking at it from the standpoint of Walmart's lens, why did Walmart decide to opt into this pilot program here in Rhode Island, Chris?

SPEAKER_01 2:54

Yeah, absolutely. I'll take that question, obviously. But uh yeah, you know, Walmart was proud to participate because the program it lines up directly with our company's purpose. And not to sound like a commercial, but you know, helping people save money and live better, that that's what we're all about as a company. So, you know, for a lot of families um here in Rhode Island, uh the issues not not really whether they can, you know, want to make healthy choices. I mean, they they know they want to put fresh fruits and vegetables on the table. You know, I think everyone has a general knowledge of that. You know, the challenge is often affordability, you know, as you touched upon, you know, especially when household budgets are tight. So the Eat Well, Be Well program is a very practical program. It helped it helps uh SNAP customers stretch their grocery dollars when they purchase eligible fresh produce. And it does so in a way that's simple for the customer. Um, you know, there's no separate enrollment process. Customers can shop as normally as they would, and the incentive is applied through the EBT system at checkout. So it it really made a lot of sense for our company to get on board and help the program. And it's also a you know a really strong public-private partnership. You know, Rhode Island state leaders obviously are involved, DHS, Rhode Island Public Health Institute obviously is involved, community partners. And so it it was a really you know a night, nice program to be a part of and continue to be a part of, especially with the extended funding. You know, Walmart's role was to you know help make the program available in the places where Rhode Islanders are already shopping for groceries, you know, at our local stores here in Rhode Island. So that that that's where we're we you know really uh you know were able to be helpful here and offer convenient access, fresh produce, um, you know, and of course low prices.

Bill Bartholomew 4:41

Right. And and Chris, you touched on something, the logistics here. Let's get into that. Let's start with the practicals here. This is so important. There's no extra sign-up. There's no, hey, check, go to this portal, enroll here. What was that password again? Anything like that, or secondary or auxiliary card you've got to pull out. There's nothing like that. Snap recipients just do what you always do. You just automatically receive the incentive at checkout. Dr. Nunn, why from a psychological and practical standpoint was that an important component here?

SPEAKER_00 5:10

Well, we wanted to bring this program to where people shop. And that's at grocery stores. And so and we wanted to make it seamless and easy. Sometimes it's really hard to sign up for public uh assistance programs. And we wanted to work with partners who do a great job reaching people who need um help. And so this program happens automatically at the checkout. So, what does that mean? I throw a bunch of fruits and vegetables into my cart. Let's say that I spend $50 on my vegetables, fruits and vegetables for my family for the week. I get $25 applied back onto my EBT card automatically. It's kind of invisible to the person at the register. And it's um, but you get a you um it and it it's applied automatically and it shows up on your receipt. So it goes right back onto your EBT card. So that means you would have $25 more dollars to spend wherever you want. It doesn't have to be at Walmart or stop and shop because you made the healthy choice by buying fruits and vegetables.

Bill Bartholomew 6:20

Let's look at this from the logistics side of the retailer, Chris. So in theory, someone comes into the store, comes, comes into a Walmart location, and uh they're doing their grocery shopping and the incentive is automatically applied. It's basically like a coupon for from the retailer point of sale standpoint. You don't have to jump through a bunch of hoops. The system already exists. But there are still, um, I understand, a lot of uh there's a lot of time and resources that were required on the front end just to get that point of sale system uh where where it is now, where it can administer the program without having to jump through hoops at every single transaction. So talk about the process. What was that like? And and for other retailers that are maybe want to follow your lead here and consider opting into the program, even in a competitive environment, what what's your recommendation to them?

SPEAKER_01 7:10

Right. Absolutely. No, you know, I appreciate that question. It's a great one. You know, and a program like this, it definitely requires coordination in and a lot of it. You know, the the customer experience needs to be simple. We we know that. Um, and making that happen behind the scenes takes a lot of work. And so, you know, retailers need to make sure eligible items are identified correctly, the point of sale system can recognize qualifying purchases, um, and the E B and the EBT incentive is applied accurately and consistently. So it definitely took a lot of work. Um, you know, the strength of the eat well, be well is that it's a it's a low barrier. Customers can shop for eligible fruits and vegetables, use their EBT card, and the incentive works through the checkout process. So I you know, I guess my advice to other retailers would be to you know really lean into the partnership very early in the process, work closely with the state and the program administrators, public health partners, you know, folks I mentioned a little bit earlier, and especially internal uh technology operations teams, you know, to get really just to get everyone on board and pulling and pulling in the same direction. So that you know, the more alignment they are up front on eligible products and the customer experience and reporting and and and troubleshooting as well. Um, you know, the the better the program will work for everybody. So it's you know, once customers are in the stores, it it works seamlessly.

Bill Bartholomew 8:35

Let's go back to the notion here of this being originally uh funded ostensibly through COVID money, Dr. Nunn, and then in turn a pilot uh that this pilot program and an evaluation of the program itself. The Rhode Island Public Health Institute, your organization led that evaluation of the Eat Well, Be Well program during the pilot stage. And over that two-year time frame, um, you reviewed comprehensive data, and that data came from the State Department of Human Services and by private retail partners, and you collected feedback from more than 3,500 Rhode Islanders through focus groups and online and in-person surveys. You found that since 2024, more than 106,000 Rhode Island households have benefited from the Eat Well Be Well program, earning about $10 million in additional SNAP benefits by buying fresh produce. So that basically says, yeah, this worked. Um, how much did this work? How big are those numbers and and how much does that impact resonate in terms of the need to continue moving with this program?

SPEAKER_00 11:58

Yeah, well, we know that um 76% of SNAP recipients ever use the program. And um 65% of people use it regularly. That means that they have used it, you know, more than uh at least once or twice a month in the last three months. So the proof is in the pudding of how people use things, and uh, you know, our data shows uh our sales data shows that people are using it. When we surveyed people about their experience, we also found that it had a huge impact on two very specific populations the elderly and also families with kids, um, all reported that they were eating more fresh vegetables and fruits, and it was particularly impactful for children. So this program is reaching our most vulnerable residents and helping them um eat healthier foods. That's something we're really proud of. It's if you think about it, you know, we're 40 or 50 years into the obesity pandemic and a lot of Americans still don't know what to eat. We're getting a lot of crazy messages from the federal government that actually don't promote healthy eating. Um and we know everyone can agree that eating more fruits and vegetables is good for their health. This is a way to encourage people to live their healthiest lives, and we've done it by partnering with the private sector. So businesses often do a lot better than um sometimes the government or nonprofit organizations and knowing how to reach people. And by partnering with Walmart and Stop and Shop, we were able to reach um many of uh the people um who would most use SNAP around the state and and encourage them um through financial incentives to make healthy choices at the checkout.

Bill Bartholomew 14:05

Yeah, when when you look at the success here on just a numbers basis, uh Dr. Nunn, I know we're we're just into the early phases of new funding from the Rhode Island standpoint for the fiscal year twenty-seven budget, but what other areas can uh we see this expanded to? Uh, you know, healthy water, healthy access to I don't know, any any number of other essentials. Can you see this type of program expanding? And I'll ask the same question to Chris from the retail side because it would take two to tango here.

SPEAKER_00 14:40

Well, this is kind of interesting uh when you think about this is what uh economists call behavioral economics. Financial incentives are a great way to promote behavior change. This is the first time that anything like this has been done to scale and it has worked on a population level. So, you know, um there's some evidence that shows it has worked for other things too, like smoking cessation, even drug use. Um, and so I think when we think about how we are when we think about policies, we don't necessarily always want to be punitive, right? There are ways that we can incentivize people to change their behaviors to give them rewards for making healthy choices. And this is a great example that helped a lot of people living in poverty access healthy foods.

Bill Bartholomew 15:33

And Chris, do you think this can expand into other areas beyond fruits and veggies in terms of healthy motive incentivizing healthy choices?

SPEAKER_01 15:43

Absolutely, you know, and I think the doctor did an excellent job summarizing it. You know, any program that Walmart looks at it, you know, we look at it through the customer lens. So this program, you know, obviously it provided SNAP customers, you know, more purchasing power for fresh fruits and vegetables, but that could easily translate to other products. And um, yeah, you know, I think this this could be a nice uh starting point for for other areas to pursue. Absolutely.

Bill Bartholomew 16:08

Yeah, there's a disparity right now that's not talked about. I don't know if it's even studied, but it comes from those who work for certain, usually tech or biotech or meds and eds type of firms that provide oftentimes a stipend for recreation, uh, a stipend for recreational activities. I was with somebody who was like, Oh yeah, I just bought a new paddle board for my stipend for this month, and they're healthy, and they also get shoes and they get a gym membership. This is a huge disparity in our society that many people's pro employers may not even provide them with time off sufficient to be uh anywhere near engaged in that kind of healthy activity, while other people are motivated to the extent that they're given money to do so. Uh so I wonder if there's a space where public health and retail kind of fill that gap to say, hey, come to Walmart and get X product uh that is designed for healthy, a healthier lifestyle in the sporting goods section, perhaps. And then that is funded in turn by a combination of private and public dollars just to get people, get people moving and get people connected with each other in third spaces. Uh is that pie in the sky? Uh once again, last questionnaire. I promise Dr. Nunn and uh Chris.

SPEAKER_00 17:22

I think it's a great idea. You know, we just had a step challenge at work where we asked people to record all their steps and make an effort to take more. And I usually put in at least four miles a day on foot, but it prompted me to take a lot more. And we started having walking meetings, and I think just um having we had like a public tally board, and we, you know, we were joking about calling it the wall of fame and shame about how many steps everyone took. But sometimes um incentives like that can really prompt people um to make small lifestyle changes that um can make um help them live healthier lives. You know, we started having walking meetings and normalized that in our office. So I think there are lots of things you can do. And when you have the private sector, you know, working in concert with you, you, you know, you can do so much more. I never would have imagined in a million years that I'd be working with Walmart. Um I am originally from Arkansas, but you know, but Walmart's the largest, um, I believe, the largest retailer of produce in the whole world. And so when I think about how to scale things, I think about working with the companies that reach the most people. And that made a lot of sense.

Bill Bartholomew 18:39

Yeah. Chris, last word on that. Uh you already said that you think this can kind of scale in different directions. Obviously, there's a reality, there's an economic reality, there's a business reality, and you know, people can we can all wish that we all had an indoor, I wish I had an indoor basketball court in my place I can run up and down the floor every night. But you know, let's let's let's be honest. But you and me both. But totally. But conceptually, the idea is is uh is is something to explore potentially going forward. Is that fair to say in terms of how how retailers and um stakeholders and public health and then obviously from a dollar standpoint, governments can can kind of work together to create a better public health environment for everybody?

SPEAKER_01 19:16

Yeah, absolutely. You know, I'm glad you called that out too. And you know, and again, the doctor did a nice job summarizing as well. And you know, I'd say, you know, Walmart is a company, we're always looking outside the box and where we could, you know, partner with different groups. And you know, this is just a really, really strong example of that, you know, government, public health leaders, community partners, retailers, obviously, you know, like like uh like Walmart, like my own company, um, you know, each doing their part. So, you know, and and again, you know, no single organization can do it alone. So it was nice to see all the partners come together and put this program together. Um and yeah, you know, at the end of the day, you know, Walmart tries to stay focused on the customer. You know, that that that's what it's all about. Um, and if that you know translates into broader policy uh arenas and different ideas that come up to expand the program, yeah, you know, uh we're in. Yeah, we'll we'll definitely look at that, you know, seriously and and and look to partner with with other groups and organizations moving forward. So absolutely, you know, this was a a really uh great program to be a part of and one we continue to to uh to grow and and and to your point, you know, look towards other areas of expansion.

Bill Bartholomew 20:26

So it it it's been it's been wonderful. Chris Buchanan with Walmart, Dr. Amy Nunn, Rhode Island Public Health Institute. It's happening, it's uh effective, and it's uh it's something that we should be talking about more and more. Eat well, be well. Thanks so much for your time today, both of you.

SPEAKER_00 20:41

Thank you.

Bill Bartholomew 20:42

Thank you.