The Nutrition Journey Index (NJI) is our headline metric, a composite index, developed with nutrition professionals, that measures whether a family is cultivating lasting, plant-rich nourishment.
Most programs count meals handed out. We measure whether a family's relationship with food is actually changing, across the three dimensions of our mission: access, tools, and agency.
A family with strong access to plant-rich foods but low agency is early in their journey and needs different support than a family progressing across all three. Our quarterly check-ins tell us where each family is and what they need next.
We look at whether:
We look at whether:
We look at whether the family:
Each family receives a composite NJI score from 0–100, plus a sub-score for each pillar. The score maps to a stage that guides the support we offer.
Early Journey (0–25): Significant gaps across pillars, we prioritize consistent delivery and relationship building. Building Foundations (26–50): Some access; beginning to engage with tools, we connect families to resources and cooking content. Growing (51–75): Measurable progress, we strengthen agency and independent sourcing. Thriving (76–100): Strong across all three dimensions, we monitor and celebrate milestones.
In May 2026 we completed our first full-scale Nutrition Journey Index baseline, 75 survey responses from 73 families, representing 202 children. It's the clearest picture yet of where the families we serve actually stand.
of families are food insecure on the USDA screener, and 58% are severely food insecure.
name cost as a top barrier to feeding their children well, far above any other factor.
are not confident they could sustain plant-rich eating without Sunday Lunchbox.
of children eat fewer than 3 servings of fruits & vegetables a day, against a recommended 5 or more.
of families sit in the middle stages, Building Foundations or Growing, exactly where the program does its work.
The NJI is built on established instruments, including the USDA Household Food Security Survey Module, cooking self-efficacy measures, and the Transtheoretical Model of behavior change, adapted into a family-friendly survey validated in English and Spanish. Final indicators and scoring are being refined in partnership with our board's nutrition expert.
School attendance and health benchmarks are tracked as proof of impact and shared with our school partners and funders, but kept separate from the NJI, since they can be influenced by factors beyond nutrition.