The youngstown neighborhood development corporation (YNDC) and healthcare partner MERCY health youngstown (MERCY) request a gusnip produce prescription (PPR) program award to develop the eating for…

The Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corporation (YNDC), in partnership with Mercy Health Youngstown, received a $483,000 Project Grant award dated September 15, 2025, under the Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program (GusNIP, CFDA 10.331) from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture. The award funds the "Eating for Health: Glenwood Fresh Market Produce Prescription Program," which will operate through September 14, 2028, and deliver $40-monthly produce prescriptions for six-month durations to approximately 2,000 households (4,000 participants) in Youngstown and Mahoning County, Ohio. The program provides access to fresh, locally grown and sourced produce year-round through a single brick-and-mortar retail location with weekly operating hours.

In addition to produce prescriptions, the program delivers evidence-based nutrition education, health screenings, and comprehensive program evaluation services provided collaboratively by YNDC and Mercy Health on-site. This integrated service model addresses food insecurity and dietary health needs among populations predisposed to diet-related chronic illness, while simultaneously strengthening local food and healthcare system capacity. The initiative expands upon YNDC's existing produce prescription program based on participant feedback and USDA partnership guidance, and is positioned in a retail plaza owned by YNDC located within a community where residents identified fresh fruit and vegetable access as a priority health improvement need.

The youngstown neighborhood development corporation (YNDC) and healthcare partner MERCY health youngstown (MERCY) request a gusnip produce prescription (PPR) program award to develop the eating for health: glenwood fresh market produce prescription program, which expands upon our existing PPR program based on participant feedback and partnership with the USDA. The program will provide $40/month produce prescriptions for 6-month durations to 2,000 households (4,000 participants) located in youngstown and mahoning county, ohio, from a single brick-and-mortar site with weekly hours that offers fresh produce year-round that is locally grown and/or sourced in order to enhance the viability of our local food system. Evidence-based nutrition education, health screenings, and evaluation will be conducted on site in coordination between YNDC and MERCY. The site is located in a retail plaza owned by YNDC in a community where hundreds of households reported that access to fresh fruits and vegetables is a high priority for improving their health. The program will strengthen the local food and healthcare systems' capacities to support the nutritional and food security needs of people predisposed to dietary illness and help to reduce healthcare usage in alignment with local health plan priorities by making fresh, locally grown and sourced produce free and accessible to them on a routine basis in a setting that is comfortable, inviting, and where participants can build strong relationships and trust with staff and community health workers.