The weekly Food Research and Action Center (FRAC) News Digest highlights what's new on hunger, nutrition and poverty issues at FRAC, at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, around the network of national, state and local anti-poverty and anti-hunger organizations, and in the media. The Digest will alert you to trends, reports, news items and resources and, when available, link you directly to them.

1. WIC Program Changes Hard to Realize
(The New York Times, February 29, 2008)

WIC provides nourishing food to more than eight million women, infants, and children each year, but the program is “undernourished,” according to this editorial. Changes to the foods offered in the program will bring it in line with current dietary standards by offering more fruits and vegetables to the list, along with whole grains and soy products. But, in an effort to be cost-neutral, “these changes, important as they are, fall short of what might have been accomplished,” states the editorial. The program will not increase its $5 billion budget and limits the vouchers for fruits and vegetables to $6-8 per person per month. Congress has the opportunity to increase funding for WIC and other food programs in next year’s Child Nutrition Act reauthorization. “There’s no downside to providing children an extra apple or two or more broccoli… The need to feed poor children adequately should not be a matter of debate,” the op-ed concludes.

2. Clinton Makes Child Hunger Part of Anti-Poverty Plan
(Associated Press, February 28, 2008))

Promising “greater access to healthy, fresh food” for children and creation of a food safety-net, Hillary Rodham Clinton outlined her plan to improve nutrition for children and reduce by half the number of children living in poverty, currently at 12 million. Speaking at Ohio University’s southern campus, Clinton said she would direct the Secretary of Agriculture to develop a plan to end childhood hunger, enroll more people in food stamps and increase that program’s benefits in her push to improve nutrition for children as well as adults. In addition, Clinton promised that schools in low-income neighborhoods would offer universal breakfast, and spoke of doubling the size of the summer nutrition program. Junk food would be out of schools, and all schools offering federally-funded meal programs would comply with government nutrition guidelines.

3. Economic Woes Guide Jewish Community Conference to Focus on Domestic Issues
(The Jewish Week, February 20, 2008)

Poverty in the U.S. will be the prime focus of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs (JCPA) conference. The group’s Confronting Poverty initiative, an important portion of the 2007 conference, is in response to the current economic downturn as well as federal and local service cutbacks affecting Jews living in poverty across the country – 200,000 in New York alone. Hadar Susskind, JCPA’s Washington Director, notes the “middle class anxiety” affected by “home foreclosures, the big increase in bankruptcies, the way the credit crisis has moved from the subprime market into the broader market” as adding to the economic angst.

4. Families Shop for Outdated and Damaged Food to Make their Dollars Buy More
(Wall Street Journal/USA Today, February 22, 2008)

Families battling the high cost of food are finding surplus stores featuring outdated and damaged food items can help them stretch their food budgets, according to a Wall Street Journal article mentioned in USA Today. In addition to drawing customers looking for good deals, the stores accept food stamps, which draws a sizeable portion of low-income shoppers. The stores are seeing more middle-class shoppers too - "We see a lot of new faces we haven't seen before," says Melissa Porter, marketing director of Grocery Outlet Inc. "People are feeling poorer right now." Savings can be notable, as one teacher stated he saved 25 percent on his food bill by buying more food at these surplus outlets.

5. Bill Aims to Provide More Free Breakfasts
(Burlington Free Press, February 26, 2008)

The 70 cents children in Vermont pay for reduced fee school breakfasts may be a thing of the past if H.333 is passed. This editorial in support of the bill itemizes the need for this legislative action, as many low-income children do not qualify for free breakfasts because their families earn just enough to push them over the income limits. According to the editorial, many of these families’ finances are strapped “to the point where putting meals on the table becomes a serious issue.” The op-ed piece quotes Robert Dostis, executive director of the Vermont Campaign to End Childhood Hunger, who stated that the 70 cent breakfast cost “is the biggest barrier for low-income children…Many go without breakfast, saving their money for lunch.” In Vermont, 19,000 children are from households lacking enough to eat, and 50 percent of the state’s households that bank on food shelves are families with children.

6. Farm Bill Critical for Maintaining Nutrition Programs in Vermont
(Rutland Herald, February 20, 2008)

In this editorial, Vermont Senator Douglas Racine advocates for swift passage of the Farm Bill as it will continue to assist 54,000 low-income Vermonters through the Food Stamp Program. Racine goes on to support strengthening the “nutrition safety net” and urging Congress to find the $11.5 billion necessary to address the nation’s hunger issues on a long-term basis. While food stamps provide a much-needed benefit, with studies showing children from food stamp families perform better in school, they’re falling far short of meeting the complete needs of many low-income families. Racine cites the rising cost of food, as well as the stagnant minimum food stamp benefit, as evidence that increasing food stamp funding is imperative. He also notes the positive economic effects, for businesses as well as farmers, in strengthening the Food Stamp Program.

7. Tool Hones in on State’s Hunger Problem
(Physorg.com, February 22, 2008)

Researchers at the University of Missouri have created a toolkit that they hope will be a major factor in fighting the state’s hunger problem. Titled the Missouri Hunger Atlas, the tool charts the state’s hunger-experiencing areas and catalogues the success of the various anti-hunger programs across the state. The atlas, created by the MU Interdisciplinary Center for Food Security with help from state agencies, outlines 16 different “measures of need” and 12 different “measures of program success,” and charts “hunger in every Missouri county and St. Louis City” according to atlas co-author Matt Foulkes. Although $1.1 billion is spent annually on Missouri’s public assistance programs, the state is experiencing rising numbers of people coping with hunger and food insecurity, and has one of the highest rising hunger rates in the country. The team that developed the atlas has presented it to the state’s lawmakers, hoping it will greatly assist in raising advocate awareness of the state’s hunger issue and gain increased support for agencies and organizations work to combat hunger.

8. Successful Food Stamp Challenge Kicks Off Second Year
(Hartford Courant, March 2, 2008)

Hartford, Connecticut’s Charter Oak Cultural Center seeks to raise the awareness of even more community members with its 2nd Annual Food Stamp Challenge. Last year’s challenge, started by the Center’s executive director Rabbi Donna Berman, enlisted 80 residents, including elected officials, to take the challenge for a day, week or month. Rabbi Berman believes more participated “unofficially.” FRAC featured last year’s challenge on its Web site, which prompted more groups to institute the challenge. This year, the Center is partnering with End Hunger CT!, Foodshare, the Jewish Community Relations Council, and Hands on Hartford. Participants and others are encouraged to contribute to Hands on Hartford, beneficiary of this year’s charitable kickoff. By taking the challenge, participants are looking to increase their understanding of how low-income residents live and the choices they have to make in order to provide for the basics in their lives. According to Berman, “[The Challenge] really is life-changing…I live with more consciousness, more gratitude…it still feels urgent. It didn’t wear off.”

9. NYC to License Carts to Benefit Poor Neighborhoods
(The New York Times, February 28, 2008)

A bill passed by the NY City Council will license more fruit and vegetable carts and give low-income residents better access to healthier foods. Designed to not only improve the nutrition of poor neighborhoods, the carts are another method the city is using to combat obesity and diabetes, especially in parts of the city experiencing high rates of both. In addition, research has shown that only 20 to 40 percent of bodegas (the name for a type of convenience store in the city) stocked bananas, oranges and apples, while only 2 to 6 percent sold leafy green vegetables. A primary concern among advocates is that neighborhoods were identified by consumption rather than the need for grocery stores – residents were asked how often they consumed fresh fruits and vegetables, regardless of their access or proximity to a grocery store – resulting in carts being licensed in neighborhoods with access to healthy food rather than areas lacking grocery stores.
(Related story in The Washington Post.)

10. Popular Teen Singing Group Highlights Benefits of School Breakfast
(Suburban Chicago News, February 23, 2008)

The Jonas Brothers, a top singing group associated with the Hannah Montana craze, performed at suburban Chicago’s Kimball Middle School and brought teens the message that breakfast should not be missed. “Students spend so many hours in school, and you need those nutrients to keep going,” said performer Joe Jonas. “We know how important it is to eat breakfast.”

11. D.C. Plan Mixes Child Nutrition and Physical Activity to Fight Obesity
(The Washington Post, February 29, 2008)

DC’s high rate of childhood obesity will be a major focus of the Child Health Action Plan, a new public-private partnership to improve the overall health of the city’s children. Overweight and obese children will benefit from the plan’s policies calling for children to have better access to healthy food choices and mandating that school meals exceed federal guidelines for nutrition. The plan’s goals include reversing obesity rates by 2010, and includes city agencies and nonprofit organizations as key to this outcome. Currently, research shows that 45 percent of the city’s children are obese.

12. Food Stamp Challenge Leaves Chicago Official Hungry for Change
(MyFox Chicago, February 28, 2008)

Alderman Leslie Hairston, of Chicago’s 5th Ward, recently completed the Food Stamp Challenge and is profiled on this televised news story. “You can’t very well legislate on something that you don’t know anything about,” said Hairston, who took the challenge to raise her awareness of the plight of the city’s hungry. The video follows Hairston as she limits herself to purchasing the food stamp allowance of $21 worth of groceries for one week. Hairston ends up putting a selection back to reach a total or $20.99, and the video shows exactly how much (or how little) that money buys. “With all the starches…you get bloated,” she notes, and says that toward the end of the week, there were times she didn’t want to eat at all “because it was so unhealthy.” The report includes footage of families picking up free food from the Chicago Food Depository, “man on the street” interviews with household heads and children, and concludes with information on the upcoming Farm Bill which may increase the number of people eligible for the benefit as well as raise the allotment amount.

13. Breakfast May Be Different, But Effects are the Same
(Daily Yomiuri, February 23, 2008)

School breakfasts at one Japanese elementary school are seeing some of the same results as breakfast programs in the U.S. After beginning a school breakfast program, a Kure primary school saw student absentee rates drop at total of 158 absences between April and October. A special miso soup, made with dried fish, potatoes, carrots and onions, is drawing the students into breakfast. Developed by a dietician who was interested in creating a recipe that could be cooked and ready quickly, the soup has “improved students’ lifestyles as a whole,” according to the school’s principal Junji Nakagawa. Children have also been involved in preparing the soup’s main ingredient, miso, a form of bean paste, at a field trip to a local miso manufacturer.

14. Australia’s Citizens Battle Same Social Problems as Americans
(AdelaideNow, February 22, 2008)

Rising rents and mortgages are forcing thousands of Australians to choose paying those bills over buying food according to research by the Australian Housing and Urban Research Unit (AHURU). One-quarter of the country’s low-income residents in rental properties go without food in order to meet monthly apartment payments; housing experts believe the lack of affordable housing will drive Australia into a recession. While some residents may end up living with relatives, the numbers of homeless will increase, according to experts. “If you don’t have affordable housing,” said AHURU Professor Terry Burke, “…you are going to find…a great deal of social unrest and human suffering than what you have now.”