The Food Research and Action Center (FRAC) released its guide to the Disaster Food Stamp Program that highlights how responding quickly, planning ahead, utilizing technology, and conducting outreach are important ways that public agencies and social service providers can assist with disaster relief and connect needy families to valuable nutrition programs. The guide is a revised version of a prior FRAC publication that builds on the lessons learned in 2005.

The Food Stamp Program provides replacement benefits to recipients who lose food in a disaster. It also extends benefits to families that suddenly find themselves in need of food assistance but might not have been ordinarily eligible for the program. Last year alone, disaster food stamps provided more than $928 million in nutrition assistance to 2.4 million households affected by Hurricanes Katrina, Rita, and Wilma.

“Too often, social service providers, people affected by the disasters and even public officials just don’t know that these programs are out there,” said FRAC President Jim Weill. “A crucial strength of the Food Stamp Program is its ability to respond quickly to changes in need, whether those changes are caused by economic downturns or disaster situations.”

The FRAC guide is meant to support communities in thinking strategically about how best to serve individuals in a range of disaster situations, including hurricanes, floods, tornadoes, ice storms, power outages, and even pandemic flu. Designed to be a one-stop resource for advocates and service providers, it details the important role that the federal nutrition programs play in helping hard-hit families and communities recover. It covers the basics of the Disaster Food Stamp Program as well the nutrition assistance provided by other federal programs like school lunch and breakfast, the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP), and WIC.

“As we head into the heart of a new hurricane season, we wanted to be sure that the lessons learned from 2005 are widely available,” said Weill.

The internet played a key role in ensuring that individuals and community groups were informed of the benefits available after Hurricane Katrina and other recent disasters. For example, FRAC created a Special Hurricane Katrina Center online that provided vital updates on federal and state disaster policies, quickly becoming the hub of information during the 2005 hurricane season. Advocates can work with their state and local food stamp agencies to develop web pages with specific information on disaster benefits.

“In 2005, the significant food stamp support to hurricane survivors was due to a combination of factors: the entitlement structure of the program, which allowed it to respond quickly to deep and urgent need; strong leadership from political appointees and career officials at the U.S. Department of Agriculture; key efforts of state governments; efficiency of the Electronic Benefit Transfer delivery system; and outreach and advocacy by non-profit groups,” explained FRAC Legal Director Ellen Vollinger.

This version of the FRAC guide was authored by Larisa Bowman, FRAC’s Congressional Hunger Center Emerson Fellow.

# # #

The Food Research and Action Center (www.frac.org) is the leading national organization working for more effective public and private policies to eradicate domestic hunger and undernutrition.

View report

Printer Friendly Version