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. House passes Farm Bill with key nutrition program improvements
(FRAC, July 27, 2007)
The House recently approved the Farm Bill which, among other provisions, invests $4 billion over five years to improve Food Stamp Program benefits and access and increase funding for The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP). These investments represent real progress in addressing hunger in the United States, according to FRAC. No Senate Agriculture Committee mark up has yet been set, but Committee and full Senate action is due before the October 1 for reauthorizing the Farm Bill. The bill was passed by a vote of 231 to 191.
2. Survey: Many CSFP participants do not receive food stamps
(National CSFP Association, July 25, 2007)
About a third of low-income Americans who receive access to meal deliveries and nutrition services through the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP) receive food stamps, according to a new survey of 26,209 CSFP beneficiaries in 32 states. The survey, conducted by the National CSFP Association, found that nearly 30 percent of participants did not apply for food stamps because they were homebound or lacked transportation or outside aid. Another 35.9 percent who applied for food stamps do not receive assistance and more than a quarter of CSFP beneficiaries who applied to the Food Stamp Program were denied benefits. Frank Kubik, president of the association pointed out that both CSFP and food stamps play an important role in helping people put food on the table. "Both programs need to be strengthened, not out or eliminated," he concluded.
3. Kraft warns of 'perfect storm' in dairy market
(Financial Times, August 1, 2007)
As dairy prices continue to increase, Kraft chief executive Irene Rosenfeld cautioned that soaring milk prices will lead people to eat and drink fewer dairy products. "2007 is shaping up to have the highest average dairy prices on record," Rosenfeld said. "The high cost of milk is beginning to slow consumption." Rosenfeld warns that a "perfect storm" has developed in the dairy market because of high animal feed costs, increasing demand in Asia and Africa and a drought in Australia. Nearly half the milk consumed in the U.S. is through cheese while 30 percent is through liquid milk, according to the National Milk Producers Federation.
4. Consumers shop at discount grocery outlets as food prices increase
(Star Tribune, July 30, 2007)
Food prices increased nearly 4 percent in the last year, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. Orange juice prices jumped 33.2 percent while egg prices rose 10.5 percent, and the cost of ground chuck increased 7.7 percent. A recent study of 812 consumers found grocery store prices were viewed as the most inflationary beating out home electronics, home furnishings and drugstores. Scott Godes, president of a discount grocery outlet, has seen a 30 percent increase in business, and many of his shoppers drive in from the suburbs, he said. Mike Abernathy, owner of another discount outlet, has seen an increase of more than 25 percent.
5. Eleven food companies pledge to change advertising to children
(Better Business Bureau, July 28, 2007)
Eleven food companies recently announced that they would follow more stringent guidelines regarding advertisements to children. Cadbury Adams, USA, LLC; Campbell Soup Company; The Coca-Cola Company; General Mills, Inc.; The Hershey Company; Kellogg Company; Kraft Foods Inc.; Mars, Inc.; McDonald’s USA LLC; PepsiCo, Inc.; and Unilever accounted for an estimated two-thirds of children’s food and beverage television advertising expenditures in 2004, according to the Better Business Bureau. "These companies have pledged to focus essentially all of their advertising primarily directed to children under 12 on products meeting better-for-you standards or refrain from advertising to that age group," said Steven J. Cole, President and CEO of the Council of Better Business Bureaus. "These expansive commitments significantly exceed the Initiative's baseline requirements. In addition, all participants will take the unprecedented step of voluntarily opening their commitments to the BBB’s independent compliance monitoring and reporting."
6. Economic growth unbalanced, says institute
(Economic Policy Institute, August 1, 2007)
Economic growth in the U.S. is becoming increasingly unbalanced, according to the Economic Policy Institute. The top one percent earned 21.8 percent of the total national income in 2005, which is up 3.6 percentage points since 2001. The lower 90 percent of households experienced a 4.2 percent decline in incomes over the same period, according to the institute. The increased inequality caused the bottom 90 percent of households to lose $2,071 in income on average while the top one percent of households gained an average of $183,902.
7. Less expensive foods are often nutrition-poor and calorie-dense, says doctor
(Portland Press Herald, July 29, 2007)
Sydney Sewall, a pediatrician and head of medicine at a Maine hospital, said that there is a growing nutritional deprivation in the U.S. because less expensive food is nutrition-poor and calorie-dense. Harmonie Hagerman, a mother of two, finds it difficult to find nutritious food for her children on the limited income that she and her husband earn. "Fresh vegetables are important but expensive," said Hagerman.
8. Intensive programs may lead to improved fitness and nutrition for families, says study
(The Washington Post, July 29, 2007)
Intensive family programs focused on improving fitness and nutrition for families are showing encouraging results, according to a recent study in the Journal of the American Medical Association. The study says that children enrolled in family programs had healthier habits throughout the year. An intensive family program at the Children's Medical Center in Dallas consists of weekly two-hour sessions that begin with a healthy snack and a review of the previous week's goals. Parents and children are placed in separate groups for their lesson and regroup to set the next week’s targets. "The philosophy is not 'Let's get you to lose weight in 12 weeks,'" said Dr. LeAnn Kridelbaugh, the program's medical director. "What we're trying to teach them is eating habits and activity habits that you do for a lifetime."
9. Unique farm agreement provides produce to many low-income Milwaukee residents
(Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, June 14, 2007)
The Hunger Task Force of Milwaukee is one of the nation’s only food banks to run its own farm in an agreement that started four years ago when Milwaukee County officials threatened to shut down an inmate-staffed farm to cut costs. Shutting down the farm would have resulted with thousands of pounds of extra fresh produce, but no one to eat them "We had all these veggies out here," said Claude Wojtysiak, facilitator of the program. "Hunger Task Force said, 'We'll take all of it.'" The farm estimates that they will provide 335,000 pounds of produce to local food pantries, soup kitchens and homeless shelters this year. "They are definitely on the cutting edge," said Jennifer Adach, FRAC’s communications coordinator. "There are… less than a handful of other groups that are doing it."
10. Report examines food stamp participation decline in Hawaii
(The Honolulu Advertiser, July 25, 2007)
Hundreds of eligible Hawaii residents do not utilize the Food Stamp Program because of a cumbersome application process, confusion over eligibility requirements and stigma, according to a new report. The state commissioned the report after seeing a decline of 16,000 participants since 2002. Hawaii is the nation’s only state to experience a drop in food stamp participation over the last five years. The report also found that Hawaii’s food stamp application is 11 pages long if filled out on paper and 35 if filled out on a state Web site. “[We] recognize that the application process is cumbersome and some people feel it is not worth the effort," said Lillian Koller, director of the state’s Department of Human Service.
11. Indiana violated food stamp law by failing to interview some applicants
(The Associated Press, July 19, 2007)
A privatized welfare program in Indiana recently violated federal food stamp rules by bypassing interviews with state employees. The state risks losing millions of dollars in federal money if the problem is not fixed. Federal food stamp rules require state employees to interview clients before they can receive food stamp benefits, but in 11 cases observed by federal overseers, four clients did not meet with state employees and two did not have proper interviews, according to a letter from the U.S. Food and Nutrition Service.
12. Replacement food stamps available for Oklahoma flood victims
(Bartlesville Examiner Enterprise, July 28, 2007)
Eligible food stamp recipients in five Oklahoma counties may contact their local county human services center and request food stamp replacements for food lost during recent flooding in the state. Kathie Wright, programs manager for the Oklahoma Department of Human Services Food Stamp Section, said that approximately 800 households receiving food stamp benefits have been affected by the flooding. The deadline to request replacement food stamp benefits and report losses is August 15.
13. Ohio county recognized for successful Food Stamp Program
(Ashtabula Star Beacon, July 29, 2007)
The National Association of Counties recognized the Department of Job and Family Services in Ohio’s Ashtabula County for its effective and innovative approach in getting food stamp benefits to eligible residents. The agency was commended for personally contacting individuals who needed to activate their food stamp benefits. "The program has proven to be very successful for [county residents], especially those who may have otherwise fallen through the cracks and not received their food assistance," said Patrick Arcaro, executive director of DJFS.
14. USDA recognizes Rhode Island for improvements to Food Stamp Program
(The Providence Journal, July 28, 2007)
Rhode Island will receive an $800,000 bonus from USDA for improvements to the state’s operation of the Food Stamp Program. The state’s negative error rate last year was 3.05 percent, which was below the national average of 5.99 percent. Its payment error rate decreased 60 percent and was 4.02 percent compared to the national average of 8.02 percent. The state distributes about $7.5 million a month to about 77,500 eligible food stamp participants.
15. South Dakota receives food stamp award from USDA
(The Associated Press, July 27, 2007)
The South Dakota Social Services Department recently received a $617,664 bonus from USDA for being one of seven states with the lowest payment error rate during fiscal year 2006. It is the 14th consecutive year that the state had been rewarded for its operation of the Food Stamp Program, and the state plans to pump the money back into its successful program. South Dakota’s error rate was 1.83 percent, while the national average was 5.99 percent.
16. Three Vermont farmers' markets to implement Electronic Benefits Transfer
(Burlington Free Press, July 26, 2007)
Three farmers' markets in Vermont were selected to participate in the Electronic Benefits Transfer program, which will allow food stamp recipients to purchase fresh fruits and vegetables at these markets. "If we’re successful this year — which we're anticipating we will be — then hopefully we'll be able to spread it to other markets next year and the year after," said Vera Simons-Nobles of the Northeast Organic Farming Association. "Soon people will be able to use food stamps at markets all over the state." The program will begin August 9 at Winooski, Brattleboro and Bellows Falls markets.
17. Two Oregon farmers' markets to accept food stamps
(Corvallis Gazette-Times, July 31, 2007)
Two farmers' markets in Oregon recently purchased card-reading equipment to accept food stamps. Food stamp recipients can utilize Electronic Benefits Transfer to purchase fresh fruits and vegetables at the Corvallis and Albany markets. The farmers' markets also participate in the Women, Infants and Children and Senior Farmers' Market nutrition programs. "There's a lot of people in the community that believe highly nutritious food should be accessible to all people at all times," said Rivka Weinsteiger from the Ten Rivers Food Web.
18. Columbus schools may see benefits from breakfast program
(The Columbus Dispatch, July 23, 2007)
Public schools in Columbus, Ohio will launch a campaign this fall to increase participation in the school breakfast program. The breakfast program helps improve students' behavior, academic performance and attendance in schools, according to child-welfare officials. Columbus schools, which face a multimillion-dollar deficit in their food-service found, hope to increase breakfast participation to 75 percent compared to last year’s 40 percent. "If you serve more [students] without increasing labor, that helps bring in more dollars," said Charlie Kozlesky, senior vice president of school and summer nutrition at the Children's Hunger Alliance.
19. Many Minnesota children offered free summer lunches
(Southwest Journal, July 30, 2007)
Free lunches are offered to children and teenagers at 115 sites in Minnesota this summer. The program is sponsored by USDA and is implemented in areas where at least 50 percent of children come from families at or below 185 percent of the federal poverty rate. Janine VanHee, who takes her 7-year-old son to one of the meal sites, said, "It’s an excellent program for low-income families." According to USDA, nearly 1.1 million free summer meals were served in Minnesota last year, and it is estimated that about 25,000 children and teenagers visited a summer lunch site each day in the state.
20. Las Vegas second-graders write letters to improve school meals
(The Associated Press, July 30, 2007)
Second-graders in Las Vegas organized a letter-writing campaign to help improve meals at their elementary school. Students voiced concerns about foods they thought were being served too often, such as canned green beans, but they also offered praise for some food items. The food service department of the Clark County School District responded to the letter-writing campaign by sending staff to the school to see what alternatives the students preferred. "They were excited to get a response back," said Constantine Christopulos, the students' teacher. "I taught them the pen is mightier than the sword, and hopefully they remember that forever."
News Digest Archives |
www.frac.org