Issues for the Hmong in acquiring nutritious, reasonably priced foods

Nearly 200,000 Hmong live in the U.S. primarily in California, Minnesota, and Wisconsin, with smaller populations in North Carolina, Michigan, Colorado and Oregon. The Hmong have one of the highest rates of poverty. Hmong have an oral tradition and hence, some do not read or write Hmong or English. For newly arrived refugees, there exists major challenges in accessing healthy yet reasonably priced foods. Three key informants who assist Hmong refugees on location with food shopping were interviewed. Data served as baseline information for development of a questionnaire to further identify and verify the challenges new refugees face in food access and eating healthily. The key informants all indicated food shopping posed a significant problem for Hmong. Specifically identifying food products, comparing prices, and efficient use of resources topped their list of concerns. Results from 15 refugees' questionnaires indicated issues including food safety, being unable to locate and identify specific grocery items, not understanding unit pricing, and not being able to make a shopping list or plan to avoid frequent trips to the market or overbuying. Mean age of the refugees was 40. Family size ranged from 3 to 13 and refugees had been in the U.S. from 1 to 15 years. There is a considerable need for educational intervention to help the Hmong overcome barriers to purchasing healthy foods economically for health promotion and chronic disease prevention. To successfully address the challenges and develop effective messages, cultural food patterns, beliefs about health, and language issues must be considered.