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FoodAPS National Household Food Acquisition and Purchase Survey - Data Access

One of the goals of USDA's National Household Food Acquisition and Purchase Survey (FoodAPS) was to encourage independent scientific research on the determinants and consequences of U.S. households’ food choices. 

To meet this goal, ERS provides access to public-use and restricted-use data files, and related documentation.

Public-use data files

The public-use files include: the household-level and individual-level interview files, the food-at-home (FAH) and food-away-from-home (FAFH) event files, the FAH and FAFH item files, data from the Meals and Snacks form, and household access to FAFH outlets and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)-authorized FAH retailers. All codebooks and a User's Guide, providing an overview of the survey and data sets as well as general notes about using the data, are available in the Documentation file on the Overview page).

For the public-use data files, ERS removed identifying variables from the restricted-use data files. Users can download the public-use data in three file formats: SAS, STATA, and CSV. If the public-use files are not sufficient for the researchers' needs, users may want to gain access to restricted-use data.

Restricted-use data files

Researchers who have projects that cannot be completed with public-use data may apply to use the restricted-use FoodAPS data (see appendix C in the User's Guide on the Overview page for variables that are available in the restricted-use files). Researchers with approved projects may only access the restricted-use data via a secure data enclave (fees apply).

To apply for access to restricted-use data, please visit the Standard Application Process (SAP) Portal at www.ResearchDataGov.org. The application process using SAP emerged from the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018 (Evidence Act). The Evidence Act calls for the Federal Government to establish a standard application process through which agencies, the Congressional Budget Office, State, local, and Tribal governments, researchers, and other individuals (as appropriate) may apply for access to confidential microdata. The SAP Portal is a web-based data catalog and common application that serves as a “front door” to apply for confidential data from any of the 16 principal Federal statistical agencies and units for evidence-building purposes. For more information, please see the USDA, Economic Research Service’s page within the Standard Application Process portal. 

If you are interested in applying to use the FoodAPS data, please contact the FoodAPS Team to better understand if the FoodAPS data are a good fit for your project.