(OR27-03-26) Associations Between Participants' Food Choices and Satisfaction With the 2024 WIC Food Package Revisions in Louisiana

Objectives: Participation in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) is associated with improved diet quality, yet many participants exit the program while still eligible. Given the relationship between satisfaction with WIC benefits and program retention, this study examined factors informing WIC participant’s food choices as correlates of satisfaction with the 2024 revisions to the WIC food package.

Methods: In 2026, we administered a statewide cross-sectional survey to WIC participants and legal guardians of WIC-enrolled children who were ≥18 years old and able to read English or Spanish. Participants self-reported their socio-demographics and completed a screener measuring the importance of seven factors in their daily food choices (e.g., doctor recommendation, cultural preferences). Satisfaction with each revision to the WIC food package was assessed using a 5-point Likert-scale. We assigned each Likert response a numeric value, summed responses to generate a total satisfaction score, and categorized the total score into quartiles based on the sample’s distribution. We used ordinal logistic regression models to examine associations between satisfaction with the revised WIC food package and each individual food choice factor and all seven factors cumulatively.

Results: The survey was completed by 3,325 adults (mean age: 30.3 years; 99.3% female). Participants who rated eating doctor recommended food as “very important” had higher odds of reporting greater satisfaction with the revised WIC food package than those who rated it as less important (OR:1.62; 95% CI:1.41-1.85). Participants who rated following a traditional cultural diet as “very important” had higher odds of reporting greater satisfaction with the revised WIC food package than those who rated it as less important (OR:1.60; 95% CI:1.35-1.88). Participants who rated all seven factors as “very important” had higher odds of reporting greater satisfaction with the revised WIC food package than those who rated none of the factors as “very important” (OR:3.06; 95% CI:2.25-4.17).

Conclusions: Placing strong importance on cultural dietary practices and other food choice factors is positively associated with satisfaction with the revised WIC food package in Louisiana.

Funding Sources: Funded by the Phyllis M Taylor Center and Tulane Center for Public Service