The Weekly Food Research and Action Center 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. As SNAP/Food Stamps Turn 50, Participation Continues to Increase
(Sys-Con Media, September 25, 2009)

Congress passed a bill 50 years ago this month that authorized food stamps for low-income Americans, recognizing that some need help in achieving minimum levels of nutrition.

In Vermont…
(Vermontbiz.com, September 24, 2009; Times Argus, September 20, 2009)

More than 80,000 residents – one out of every eight - received the benefit, known as 3SquaresVT, in August 2009. During that month, participation in the program brought $10 million in federal funds to the state, which was spent in grocery stores and farmers’ markets. In August 2008, 57,672 Vermonters participated in the program. Angela Smith-Dieng, Senior 3SquaresVT/Food Stamp Nutrition Program & Policy Specialist at the Vermont Campaign to End Childhood Hunger, noted the increase in participation is due to the economy’s downturn. Other Vermont aid programs have seen steep increases. Vermont 2-1-1, now in its fifth year, saw a jump in calls starting in late-summer 2008. “The numbers are reflective of what is going on not only in Vermont but in the country,” said MaryEllen Mendl, head of the program. Even if the economy soon starts to recover, Vermonters will still need help, said Gov. James Douglas. “[M]any residents resist using a program such as food stamps until all other options are exhausted,” he said, “and therefore the peak demand for such programs may come after the recession ends.”

In Florida…
(Palm Beach Post, September 25, 2009)

SNAP/Food Stamp participation numbers in Palm Beach County and the Treasure Coast increased 50 percent over the past year, according to the Department of Children and Families (DCF). The county distributed $12.98 million in SNAP/Food Stamp aid in August, up from $6.7 million in July 2008, an increase helped by the additional benefits in the federal stimulus plan. And there is more aid to give. “We believe that fewer than half of the eligible residents in Palm Beach County are actually receiving food stamps,” said Elisa Cramer of DCF’s Palm Beach County office. “Not only are residents missing nutritional value; there’s a large financial impact as well.” DCF offices are reaching out by sending flyers to schools and Head Start programs, and letting people know about the program at back-to-school events. Resident can check their eligibility and apply for SNAP/Food Stamps online at www.myflorida.com/accessFlorida. In addition, dozens of social service organizations in the county can help needy residents access the online application.

2. Agriculture Secretary Supports Direct Certification as Way to Streamline School Meal Application Process
(Reuters, September 23, 2009)

USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack recently told a children’s health conference that he supports “direct certification” for child nutrition programs, which removes paperwork barriers for children receiving free and reduced-price school meals. Direct certification qualifies children automatically if they receive SNAP/Food Stamps or other social service assistance.. “We think it’s one way to improve on the current system,” said Vilsack, and noted that direct certification should be one of the goals of the upcoming reauthorization of the child nutrition programs later this year. One anti-hunger advocate noted that this could benefit hundreds of thousands of children and school nutrition programs. Vilsack also said that Child Nutrition Reauthorization should include improved school meal nutrition, and offered ideas for improving student health and nutrition through encouraging them to exercise and replacing high-calorie, sugary drinks with water and fruit juices in school vending machines.

3. Illinois Can Do More to Bring SNAP/Food Stamps to Needy Residents
(Progress Illinois, September 11, 2009; Pantagraph.com, September 21, 2009)

SNAP/Food Stamps play a “crucial role” in economic stimulus, notes an op-ed in Progress Illinois. The benefit puts food on the table for “millions of struggling families,” and provides a boost to local businesses. But according to the Food Research and Action Center, 141,843 eligible SNAP/Food Stamp households in Cook County, Ill. are not receiving the benefit, although enrollment in the program increased 31 percent between 2005 and 2008 (from 592,295 to 778,323). Diane Doherty, of the Illinois Hunger Coalition, notes Illinois can do better, but not if state-level leadership cuts human services outreach. “[W]e cannot afford to lose any of the gains we have made which will be inevitable if we downsize DHS offices or take them out of neighborhoods with high poverty rates,” she said. Across the state, 21 percent of eligible residents aren’t receiving the benefit, perhaps because they don’t know about the program, don’t know how to sign up, or fear being stigmatized. “We certainly are backing any effort to encourage eligible people to sign up,” said Tom Green of the Illinois Department of Human Services. “We’re working with communities on outreach efforts to try to get the SNAP benefits used.” In August 2009, McLean County missed out on $333,000 in federal SNAP/Food Stamp funds because eligible residents weren’t taking advantage of the program. The United Way office in the county is making funds available through a grant to an agency interested in finding out why there’s a “SNAP gap.”

4. Nevada SNAP/Food Stamp, Other Aid Participation and Requests Rise Along with Unemployment Rate
(Las Vegas Sun, September 27, 2009)

Nevada’s unemployment rate has spiked to 13.2 percent, forcing many to apply for SNAP/Food Stamps and other forms of government aid as their unemployment payments come to an end, their savings run dry, and jobs become even scarcer. The state Health and Human Services Department estimates that by 2013, nearly one in five Nevadans will receive SNAP/Food Stamps; in June 2009, SNAP/Food Stamp participation increased 45 percent from the previous June. Some experts maintain that things will get even worse, since the projection model estimated a 13.3 percent peak unemployment rate in the first quarter of 2010, but the August number is already close to that estimate. “Clearly unemployment is going to get worse instead of getting better,” said Ellen Crecelius, a Health and Human Services economist. Economic Forum Vice Chairman John Restrepo, forecasts unemployment to rise to 15 or 16 percent by 2010. When the numbers of marginally employed and people working part-time (and who would rather be working full-time) are included, noted University of Las Vegas economist Keith Schwer, the rate rises to 20 percent. Any recovery, according to economists, will come to Nevada after the rest of the country, and there will be a significant lag time before the state’s social programs start feeling decreased pressure. The long-term unemployed will continue to rely on public assistance in order to live.

5. FNS Tells Texas to Improve SNAP/Food Stamp Application Processing Timeliness
(Austin American-Statesman, September 25, 2009)

Texas is failing to process more than a third of SNAP/Food Stamp applications within 30 days, the time period stated by federal law. This has prompted USDA to send a letter to the state, warning it could lose federal funds unless it fixes the SNAP/Food Stamp processing system. The letter, from federal officials to the state’s Health and Human Services Executive Commissioner Tom Suehs, is “a warning sterner that we’ve ever seen before,” said Celia Hagert of the Center for Public Policy Priorities. According to the letter, Texas has 60 days to produce a corrective plan of action, which the commission plans to accomplish, said spokeswoman Stephanie Goodman. The state’s SNAP/Food Stamp enrollment system has been plagued by backlogs and errors, but the Texas Legislative Budget Board denied a request from the commission to hire 650 more workers.

6. New Yorkers Relying on Coney Island SNAP/Food Stamp Office Will Soon Have to Travel Further for Assistance
(New York Daily News, September 28, 2009)

“They already closed my old one and that was a pain in the neck,” said Tina Morales of Borough Park upon being told that the Coney Island SNAP/Food Stamp office will close next month. “This is really bad,” she added. “The next closest one is downtown Manhattan. It’s horrible.” Although the office was heavily trafficked, the Human Resource Administration (HRA) is closing it in order to save money and streamline services. While first-time applicants still need to be fingerprinted, others can re-register online or by phone, noted HRA’s Barbara Brancaccio. Representative Jerrold Nadler (D) and other local politicians sent a letter to HRA about closing the office, which serves nearly 23,000 residents. “This closure sends the wrong message to the community about the government’s priorities, especially in light of the major revitalization occurring a block away, in Coney Island’s amusement district,” said Nadler in a statement.

7. U.S. Representatives Relay Concerns to USDA About Indiana’s Privatized System
(WTHR, September 25, 2009)

Indiana’s FSSA privatization program has been criticized for its handling of SNAP/Food Stamp applications, having lost documents, abruptly denied coverage, and losing cases. Representatives Andre Carson and Baron Hill complained to USDA about the program, and how it has not been timely in getting benefits to needy Indiana residents. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack recently responded to the congressmen via a letter in which he states that USDA would not pull the plug on the state’s privatization project. Vilsack does note in the letter that the “FNS (Food and Nutrition Service) is concerned about any decline in timeliness under the new service delivery,” and wrote that “Timely and accurate processing of applications is critical to meeting the needs of low-income people.” FNS met recently with FSSA officials, and “will continue to monitor Indian’s administration of the program,” notes the letter.

8. Tennessee Residents Can Now Check SNAP/Food Stamp Eligibility Online
(WPLN, September 22, 2009)

Tennessee recently launched a new Web tool – http://www.tennesseeanytime.org/findhelptn/ – which will help needy residents determine their eligibility for SNAP/Food Stamps, along with TennCare, Social Security benefits, and other social services. The site can screen visitors in 15 minutes for ten different programs, once the user responds to a “simple 10-step questionnaire” which asks for household income, employment, disability, and insurance status. According to Marsha Edwards of East Nashville’s Martha O’Bryan Center, the site will help needy residents “figure out their eligibility by themselves,” and keeps them from having to share personal data with one more social worker and will improve agency efficiency. “Everyone wants to solve their own problems,” said Edwards. “It’s a misnomer that someone wants someone else to do it.”

9. Review Finds that Some Michigan Soup Kitchens Could Improve Nutrition Quality
(Mlive.com, September 24, 2009)

Three soup kitchens in the Grand Rapids, Mich. area – God’s Kitchen, Guiding Light Mission, and Mel Trotter Ministries – asked Grand Valley State University (GVSU) to review the meals they were serving. GVSU students reviewed 41 meals which included pastas, meat, chicken, bread, potatoes, green beans, corn and desserts, and found that the meals served were high in fat and sodium and low in calcium. The soup kitchens are now considering hiring a nutritionist, as well as letting donors know the types of food the organizations could best use. The GVSU study reflects a national trend of efforts to connect struggling families with sources of healthy food. In 2008, Yale University’s Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity found that low-income neighborhoods had lower-quality fresh produce than high-income neighborhoods, and reported that low-income stores carried fewer varieties of healthy foods, like low-fat dairy and whole grains.

10. Free Breakfast Program Enters Second Year in Michigan School District
(MLive.com, September 11, 2009)

Belding School District in Michigan began offering free breakfast to all students last year and is continuing the program for a second year. “When we launched the program last year, we heard from many parents who were struggling to make ends meet,” said Superintendent Chuck Barker. “The program has already proved to be a success, with students more eager to learn when the school day begins.” Seven months after the pilot program began, school administrators noticed fewer discipline problems among the students, and better attendance. This school year, an estimated 90 percent of the district’s 2,200 students will participate in the program. Before the program began last year, only 20 percent of eligible students took advantage of the free breakfast program, although 50 percent of the district’s students qualified. Officials had thought the pilot program would use $20,000 in surplus cafeteria funds, but found that the federal government covered the program. “At what we consider the ‘right’ size school, we can offer this opportunity, supporting students’ academic, social and personal growth,” noted Tom Humphreys, Board of Education president.

11. Event in Rhode Island Highlights Efforts to Improve Student Nutrition
(Warwickonline.com, September 24, 2009)

At a recent event titled “Breakfast for School Leaders,” more than 300 teachers and administrators from all 36 school districts in Rhode Island learned how statewide school nutrition initiatives, laws and practices are being implemented to improve the health of public school students. The meeting also introduced the state’s newly mandated nutrition requirements, which will make school breakfasts and lunches some of the healthiest in the nation. Warwick, R.I. schools have been implementing higher nutrition standards, ever since a study of student Body Mass Index in the 2007-2008 school year found that 15.2 percent of the districts students are overweight, and 14.5 percent are at risk of becoming overweight. The district’s public schools removed vending machines, and replaced high calorie foods with locally grown produce and bottled water. Private schools are also improving their nutrition, and found that changing the time they serve meals makes a big difference. Sue Martin of The Martin School found that students “eat better, drink more fluids and [are] more focused in class” if they have recess before lunch.

12. Michigan School District Offers Free Breakfast Wins School Breakfast Challenge
(Cadillac News, September 15, 2009)

Manton Consolidated Schools in Michigan won a silver award (and $2,500) from the state’s Department of Education in recognition of student participation in the school breakfast program. Last year, Manton schools started serving free breakfast to all students, and went from feeding an average of 75 students in May 2008 to 570 students in May 2009, more than a 50 percent increase. “It’s important that everyone has the option to have breakfast for free because then everyone is equal, and this way, different categories of kids aren’t singled out,” said food service director Shelley Ritchie. “Now, they can all have the opportunity to eat breakfast, and kids don’t feel segregated.” The money will be used for wellness/school health teams, breakfast outreach or physical education efforts, or school meal improvement.

13. Students Lobby for Classroom Breakfast and Win
(Morning Call, September 17, 2009)

The school board governing Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Middle School recently approved in-classroom breakfast. Earlier this year, Lehigh’s students lobbied the board to bring the meal to the school. Students will now be able to purchase (or receive for free or at a reduced-price) a “grab-and-go” breakfast when they arrive at school, and can take it to their homeroom class. In-classroom breakfast will be counted as instructional time, since the state Department of Education approved it earlier this year. School officials had cited the research-based benefits of breakfast, which include better student behavior and more focus on their lessons. Lehigh expects the cost of the meal will be matched by breakfast sales as well as federal reimbursements for serving free and reduced-price breakfast.

14. Jewish Leaders Ask Administration Officials to Support Upcoming Child Nutrition Reauthorization
(JTA, September 15, 2009)

Leaders from the Jewish Council of Public Affairs (JCPA) and MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger met recently with Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius to talk about hunger and poverty. Representatives from more than a dozen Jewish organizations called on administration officials to support at least $1 billion in reauthorized child nutrition funding. The groups also asked them to endorse efforts to organize a White House Conference on Hunger and Nutrition, which would discuss strategies for meeting the President’ goal of ending child hunger by 2015. “The Jewish community believes we have a moral obligation to help those in need, and one way to help is to provide individuals and families with the means to help them help themselves,” said JCPA president Rabbi Steve Gutow. “[W]e organized these meetings to show Secretaries Vilsack and Sebelius that the Jewish community is committed to reform and full of ideas to help the administration meet its goal to end childhood hunger by 2015.”

15. Boston’s Grow Clinic Helping More Families with Malnourished Children During Recession
(BU Today, September 28, 2009)

The Grow Clinic at Boston Medical Center helps families with malnourished children through the combined efforts of doctors, social workers and nutritionists. Now, during the recession, director Deborah Frank is “seeing more and more working families. These families are increasingly stressed economically.” As families lose jobs and unemployment payments run out, the center is seeing more homeless children and younger children, referred by primary care physicians diagnosing children with failure to thrive (FTT). Getting the children more food isn’t the answer; Frank and her staff figure how to fill the gaps in a family’s daily and weekly diet, and counsel families to get SNAP/Food Stamps and visit food pantries. In addition, they help families struggling with housing and other drains on their income. “[Y]ou need an intensive, multidisciplinary approach if you want to get these kids better,” notes Frank. Treatment plans include home visits, coordination with primary care physicians, a regular clinic evaluations for these children. Only some of the cost is paid for by insurance companies. “Because a lot of the care that makes our work successful is outside the medical model,” said Frank, “about three-quarters of our work is funded by philanthropy,” which covers prepaid grocery cards and salaries for multilingual outreach workers. Clinic dietician Julie Garvin has firsthand knowledge of the struggles these families go through. Through the 20 home visits she does a month, Garvin has seen families without working stoves, in homes where the electricity has been turned off. She writes meal plans for each FTT patient, and social workers make sure families can access healthy food with the help of WIC and other government services.

16. State Deficits Will Continue in 2010 as Private Sector Job Numbers Continue to Decline
(Center for American Progress, September 21, 2009)

The current recession, now in its second year, has lasted longer than any since 1933. While state and local spending has helped the weak economy, states are continuing to face budget deficits, and public sector employment has slowed and spending has decreased. Declining tax receipts are taking their toll on state budgets, and more people are requiring government-provided services. According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 48 states have addressed or are facing budget shortfalls in FY 2010, and 36 states are anticipating shortfalls in 2011. Since the start of the recession, more than 6.9 million jobs have been lost (216,000 in August alone). In the second year of a recession, states and local governments start cutting spending and employment levels, and are doing so now. As private sector jobs continue to decline, state and local budget cuts will continue to deepen. The result is delay of a strong and sustainable recovery. If state and local governments are able to continue bolstering the economy through jobs and spending, a recovery will be more likely.

17. Kroger Executive Notes Increase in SNAP/Food Stamp Use at Stores
(Seeking Alpha, September 15, 2009)

In a conference call reviewing the 2nd quarter of 2009, Kroger executive W. Rodney McMullen noted that their stores are seeing a “sharper increase in our sales from customers using food stamps,” and that government data points to the current economy as the reason for the increase in SNAP/Food Stamp benefits. This trend, a change in customer behavior, benefits Kroger “in the long term because it keeps customers in that category and in our stores.” McMullen also noted that other changes in customer behavior for the quarter resulted in “customers buying more of what they need and less of what they want. David B. Dillon, Kroger’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, commented that “consumers throughout the U.S. are going through a lot of trauma,” and that Kroger is seeing lower levels of sales at the end of the month. Customers are also spending money “only when they need to – that is for meals for the day or for the week,” and then come back to the store “a little more often.” The end of June, July and August this year saw “soft” sales periods, “something we’re just going to have to get used to because I think it’s a clear picture for what our customers are going through. They just run low on money by the end of the month,” which softens up “even more the discretionary purchases that you get.” The transcript for the conference call was provided online by Seeking Alpha.