16. Food vouchers, subsidies, social support: overview of included studies.

Study ID (country)	Study design	Overall risk of biasa	Other key details of intervention	Population (sample size at baseline: intervention/ control)	Outcome domains and measures with available data	Timepoint of measurement
Comparison 4: food vouchers
Fenn 2015 (Pakistan)	cRCT	Low	Programme name: REFANI Pakistan Intervention description and frequency: 3 intervention groups all disbursed at the same time every month for 6 consecutive months: Unconditional transfer (see OSIS Table comparison 1); Unconditional transfer (see OSIS table comparison 2) and Fresh food vouchers with a cash value of PKR 1500 (approximately USD 14), which could be exchanged for specified fresh foods (fruits, vegetables, milk and meat) in nominated shops. Provider: Action Against Hunger field staff Delivery: food vouchers disbursed monthly at distribution points. Verbal messaging from Action Against Hunger field staff at distribution that children should benefit from the transfers. Co‐interventions: WINS programme in all villages provided outpatient treatment for children aged 6 (SD 59) months with SAM, micronutrient supplementation (children, pregnant and lactating women), and behaviour change communication.	Poor and very poor HHs in agrarian district (food voucher intervention/control: 632/632 HHs)	Anthropometric indicators: Wasting (WHZ < –2SD) Severe wasting (WHZ < –3SD) WHZ Stunting (HAZ < –2SD) Severe stunting (HAZ < –3SD) HAZ MUAC BMI Biochemical indicators: Hb Morbidity: ARI Diarrhoea Anaemia	6 and 12 months
Jensen 2011 (China)	RCT	Unclear	Programme name: N/A Intervention description and frequency: 1‐month supply of vouchers entitling HHs to a price reduction of CNY 0.10, CNY 0.20 or CNY 0.30 (Rmb; 1 Rmb = USD 0.13) off the price of 1 jin (1 jin = 500 g) of the local staple (rice or wheat flour) to the value of 750 g per person per day. Provider: employees of the provincial‐level agencies of the Chinese National Bureau of Statistics. Delivery: printed vouchers redeemed by HHs at local grain shops. Shop owners reimbursed for the cost of the vouchers and given a fixed payment for complying with implementation guidelines. Re‐sale of vouchers or goods purchased with vouchers not permitted. Co‐interventions: NR	Poor urban HHs (969/324)	Adequacy of dietary intake Mineral Sufficiency index Vitamin Sufficiency index	6–7 months
Hidrobo 2014 (Ecuador)	cRCT	High	Programme name: N/A Intervention description and frequency: included a CCT group (see OSIS table comparison 2) and a food voucher group. Value of USD 40 per month per HH, given in denominations of USD 20. Participants were required to attend monthly nutrition sensitisation training sessions by HH members. Provider: World Food Programme (NPO) Delivery: printed serialised vouchers redeemed at central supermarkets in urban centres for a list of nutritionally approved foods, within 30 days of receipt. Co‐interventions: NR	Poor urban HHs (2087 HHs)	Dietary diversity: DDI; HDDS; FCS	7 months
Ponce 2017 (Ecuador)	cRCT	High	Programme name: N/A Intervention description and frequency: 2 intervention groups: HHs received a food voucher of USD 40 monthly; HHs received a food voucher of USD 40 monthly + monthly training sessions on topics that included malnutrition, food preparation, children's health, mother's health, women's rights and women's empowerment. Provider: NR Delivery: NR Co‐interventions: NR	HHs based in 3 provinces in Ecuador (food voucher only group/food voucher + training on health and nutrition/control: 171/401/201 HHs)	Dietary diversity: FCS	12 months
Comparison 5: food and nutrition subsidies
Chen 2019 (China)	cRCT	High	Programme name: N/A Intervention description and frequency: Schools in 2 intervention groups received a one‐off nutrition subsidy with a monetary equivalent of CNY 225 (USD 33) per enrolled student. Schools could use these for nutrition‐related expenses, e.g. buying food. Schoolmasters received information about the proportion of enrolled students who were anaemic, elective methods for reducing iron‐deficient anaemia, and details about anaemia's relation with school attendance, educational performance, and cognitive development. Schoolmasters in treatment group 1 were given a general policy target of 'malnutrition reduction' and in treatment group 2 a specific policy target of 'anaemia reduction', with a potential monetary bonus tied to a reduction in anaemia prevalence (CNY 150/USD 22 per student whose anaemia status changed). Provider: project team and local government Delivery: CNY 225 (equivalent to USD 33) per student was transferred into the school's bank account. Incentive payment for treatment group 2 was only calculated and transferred after the intervention period. Co‐interventions: NR	Primary schools in rural areas (nutritional subsidy only/nutritional subsidy + monetary incentive/control: 15/15/29 schools)	Dietary diversity: Dietary Diversity Score Anthropometric indicators: BMIZ Underweight Biochemical indicators: Hb Morbidity: Anaemia	6 months
Andaleeb 2016 (India)	Prospective controlled study	High	Programme name: PDS Intervention description and frequency: universal access to the PDS. All HHs that possess a ration card were eligible for 25 kg of subsidised rice, whether they are the poorest of the poor, below the poverty line or above the poverty line. Provider: state government Delivery: a ration card was a document issued by the government which entitled an individual/family to purchase from the PDS. Ration cards classified HHs based upon their poverty status and were also used as an identity card to avail many of the other government schemes. Co‐interventions: other government schemes (not specified)	Rural HHs (3819 HHs)	Adequacy of dietary intake Ratio of nutrient intake to RDA	7 years
Chakrabarti 2018 (India)	Prospective controlled study	High	Programme name: PDS Intervention description and frequency: subsidising a variety of pulses in different districts as part of the PDS, in addition to the usual subsidising of rice, wheat, sugar and kerosene oil. Provider: state governments (subsiding of pulses) and central Indian government (subsiding of rice, wheat, sugar and kerosene). Delivery: government‐issued ration cards are given to poor HHs enabling them to purchase from the PDS. Co‐interventions: NR	Rural and urban HHs in selected states (23,558/101,086 HHs)	No relevant outcome measures reported	5 years
Sturm 2013 (South Africa)	Prospective controlled study	High	Programme name: HealthyFood Program Intervention description and frequency: provided a rebate of up to 25% on healthy food purchases in > 400 designated supermarkets across South Africa, for members of the private Discovery Health Insurance and their Vitality programme. Provider: Discovery Health Insurance company in collaboration with Pick n Pay (brand) supermarkets. Delivery: members had specific Discovery credit cards that they use for shopping. Scanner data from pay points available every time the card was swiped when purchasing certain healthy food items at Pick n Pay supermarket. These data were collated monthly. Co‐interventions: NR	169,485 Discovery Vitality members who shopped at Pick n Pay supermarkets with linkable purchasing data (100,344 activated participants and 69,141 non‐participants, i.e. who were not actively using their benefits.)	Proportion of HH expenditure on food Ratio of healthy to total food expenditure: for 10%/25% rebate group compared to control	Maximum 28 months (period November 2009 to March 2012)
Comparison 6: Social support interventions
Kusuma 2017b (Indonesia)	cRCT	Unclear	Programme name: Generasi Intervention description and frequency: block payments to villages of USD 8500 (2007) and USD 18200 (2009) per village. Provider: government Delivery: trained facilitators advised village management team on allocation of funds (41% villages implemented financial incentives for health worker outreach, 79% villages implemented SFP, and 96% villages implemented financial assistance for mothers) Co‐interventions: NR	Rural HHs 1481 children aged 24–36 months	Anthropometric indicators: Stunting (HAZ < –2SD) Severe stunting (HAZ < –3SD) Wasting (WHZ < –2SD) Severe wasting (WHZ < –3SD) Underweight (WAZ < –2SD) Severe underweight (WAZ < –3SD)	1 year
Brunie 2014 (Mozambique)	Prospective controlled study	High	Programme name: VSL or a combination of VSL and Ajuda Mútua. Intervention description and frequency: VSLs are self‐managed and capitalised microfinance programmes where members pool savings and can borrow from the pool and repay with interest. Programmes work in cycles which terminate in paying out the accumulated savings and interest to members proportional to their initial deposit. The Ajuda Mútua rotating labour scheme operates with groups of HHs working together on each family's land or enterprise on a rotational basis. Provider: Save the Children (NGO) Delivery: NR Co‐interventions: SANA (Segurança Alimentar de Nutrição e Agricultura) – food security through nutrition and agriculture multiyear assistance programme targeting aspects of food utilisation. Communities are mobilised to adopt good nutrition practices, and pregnant women and carers are taught to prevent malnutrition in young children.	Interested HHs in randomised district (VSL: 395; VSL+Ajuda Mútua: 401; control: 480)	Food security: Self‐reported months of food sufficiency in previous year Dietary diversity: HDDS IDDS Anthropometric indicators: WAZ	3 years

^aOverall risk of bias based on key domains: selection and attrition bias. If any of these were high, overall risk of bias was considered high.

ARI: acute respiratory infection; BMI: body mass index; BMIZ: body mass index‐for‐age z‐score; CCT: conditional cash transfer; CNY: Chinese yuan; cRCT: cluster randomised controlled trial; DDI: Dietary Diversity Index; FCS: Food Consumption Score; HAZ: height‐for‐age z‐score; Hb: haemoglobin; HDDS: Household Dietary Diversity Score; HH: household; IDDS: Individual Dietary Diversity Score; MUAC: mid‐upper arm circumference; N/A: not applicable/available; NPO: non‐profit organisation; NR: not reported; PDS: Public Distribution System; PKR: Pakistani rupee; RCT: randomised controlled trial; RDA: recommended daily allowance; SAM: severe acute malnutrition; SD: standard deviation; SFP: Supplementary Feeding Programme; VSL: village savings and loan; WAZ: weight‐for‐age z‐score; WINS: Women and Children/Infants Improved Nutrition in Sindh; WHZ: weight‐for‐height z‐score.