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. Through Photography Exhibit, Advocate Gives Faces to Hunger in America
(The Washington Post, February 28, 2009)
An epidemiologist, folklorist and assistant professor of health policy at Drexel University, Mariana Chilton has spent several years researching hunger and appearing frequently before Congress. Four years ago, she helped launch a public clinic monitoring nutrition in underweight children at St. Christopher’s Hospital in Philadelphia. But, she kept returning to a thought that “There’s something greater that we could do here.” The project titled “Witnesses to Hunger” is Chilton’s effort to give a human face to hunger. Chilton gave inner-city single mothers digital cameras and asked them to document their lives, then exhibited the photographs at Drexel to raise awareness of hunger in America. The photo exhibit appeared before Christmas, with state welfare officials, hunger advocates, and the public attending. Some of the women who took the photos told their stories. Hunger in America, according to Chilton, shows itself in poor diets, increased childhood hospitalizations, and choices that families must make between heating bills and groceries. Chilton worked hard to gain these mothers’ trust; they now call her “Dr. Phil,” and she’s been termed their therapist, cheerleader, sister, savior, and friend. One of the women Chilton visits told her about watering powdered milk to make it last, making chicken for her children but eating noodles herself because she couldn’t afford to buy more meat, and having to stretch the $50 left on her EBT card another two weeks. “I care so much about the women and I care so much about their children,” said Chilton. “[B]ut I know that helping them with a little money here and there helps them just enough. It takes widespread policy change to have a true impact.”
2. New York City’s SNAP/Food Stamp Policy for Single Adults “Makes Little Sense”
(The New York Times, February 25, 2009)
“Mayor Bloomberg’s cramped food-relief policy makes little sense,” states this editorial commenting on the city requiring able-bodied adults to take part in a workfare program in order to receive the increased SNAP/Food Stamp benefits provided through the economic recovery act. As a “jolt” to the economy, “nothing beats food stamps,” since people spend it at grocery stores and bodegas, sustaining the local economy as they feed themselves. The economic recovery act allows single adults without children to remain eligible for SNAP/Food Stamp benefits until September 30, 2010, removing the three months per three years original rule. While states and cities are allowed to require this population to work in order to receive benefits, “forcing people to take make-work jobs to qualify for food assistance takes valuable time away from the search for a real job.” Not granting these individuals eligibility also limits the amount of money the city will receive from Washington for SNAP/Food Stamps, an estimated decrease of $750,000 a year, or millions in the next 17 months according to Public Advocate Betty Gotbaum. “At a time when the mayor is supposed to be counting every dollar, $750,000 matters,” states the editorial. By sticking to the work requirement, the mayor would have to expand the workfare program, “adding to the city’s bill.” With the economy growing worse, the numbers of hungry New Yorkers will grow – the city saw a 19 percent SNAP/Food Stamp increase in 2008. “[T]his is not the time to be stingy with food, especially if Washington is picking up the tab,” concludes the editorial.
3. New York State Rule Change Makes More People Eligible for SNAP/Food Stamps
(WBNG, March 5, 2009)
The SNAP/Food Stamp income limit for working families with significant child and dependent care expenses was changed in New York State from 130 percent of the federal poverty level to 200 percent. The change, effective March 1, means that thousands of working families will now be eligible for SNAP/Food Stamps. Not only will this change help families put food on the table, it will also free up “some of their hard-earned income for other family needs,” said Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance (OTDA) Commissioner David A. Hansell. The Farm Bill passed last year removed a cap on out-of-pocket child and dependent care deductions for SNAP/Food Stamp families; before that change, families could only deduct $175 - $200 per month for each child, which often did not correspond exactly to the amount of money the families were spending in care for each child or dependent. “For example,” notes this news article, “a family of three with earned income of $2,640 per month (180 percent of poverty) paying more than $446 a month for shelter and out-of-pocket child care costs of $400 per month would be ineligible for Food Stamps without this change because its income is too high. With this change, this family will now receive $126 a month in Food Stamp benefits.” Linda Bopp, executive director of the Nutrition Consortium of New York State, Inc., said the change is "good for families and it's good for the State's economy since all food stamp benefits are 100% federally funded."
4. SNAP/Food Stamp Boost Will Have Immediate Economic Effect in Vermont
(Bennington Banner, March 2, 2009)
3SquaresVT (the state’s new name for SNAP/Food Stamps) is slated to receive $34 million more over the next four years, having an immediate effect on the economy according to the Vermont Campaign to End Childhood Hunger. With each 3SquaresVT dollar generating $1.84 in economic activity, the additional $34 million will “create a $64 million ripple” said Angela Smith-Dieng, an outreach and policy specialist with the Campaign. The boost, which takes effect April 1, 2009, will raise the maximum benefit 13.6 percent, increasing the maximum benefit for a family of four from $588 to $688. Vermont lowered eligibility requirements at the beginning of 2009, removing restrictions on the amount of resources a person could have with a gross income under 185 percent of the federal poverty level, and eliminated counting of retirement funds with special tax status (IRAs, 401ks) for people 60 and over. The changes have made it possible for more than 30,000 additional Vermonters to receive SNAP/Food Stamps.
5. Food Co-ops Could Benefit from SNAP/Food Stamps
(Record-Bee, February 23, 2009)
In this op-ed, Record-Bee editor Cynthia Parkhill reports that USDA encourages food co-ops, in which participants purchase annual memberships and provides local and regional fruits and vegetables to members, to participate in the SNAP/Food Stamp program as a method of getting more fresh, healthy food to program recipients. She points out that USDA’s Web site asks for co-ops to help reach qualified clients, pointing out that co-ops are in a unique position to educate the community about SNAP/Food Stamps, but that USDA also recognizes “that [food co-ops] have unique features that make them different from many other retailers that participate in the program.” Parkhill states that not only can her local California co-op participate in the program, but also the farmers’ market is slated to reopen in the summer. According to USDA, California has 52 farmers’ markets authorized to accept SNAP/Food Stamp EBT cards.
6. Florida’s SNAP/Food Stamp Numbers Soar
(Lakeland Ledger, February 23, 2009)
Polk County’s SNAP/Food Stamp participation increased from 53,474 in January 2008 to 69,724 in January 2009, a 30 percent jump placing the county eighth in the number of recipients among the state’s 67 counties. Statewide, SNAP/Food Stamp numbers increased 29 percent, “the biggest jump in food assistance nationwide,” with 1.82 million people receiving SNAP/Food Stamps in January. In order to keep recipients from “extraordinary wait times,” the state legislature shifted money to the program to pay for increased staffing. To meet the demand, the Department of Children and Families notes it needs 288 more employees, at a cost of $6.5 million. “The numbers we are seeing now are unprecedented,” said Department Secretary George Sheldon. “We have Floridians who have never applied for or needed public assistance even through previous difficult economic times.”
7. Florida to Receive Billions in SNAP/Food Stamp, Other Economic Aid
(Miami Herald, March 5, 2009)
Florida expects to receive about $13.5 billion over the next three years from the economic recovery act, $1.2 billion more than previously expected said Gov. Charlie Crist. The governor made the announcement at the same time he introduced his stimulus czar, Don Winstead, who will make sure the money is spent wisely through his work with state agencies and legislators. Starting in April, the 10 percent of Floridians that receive SNAP/Food Stamp should begin seeing some of this money as their benefits increase.
8. Rhode Island Adopts Policies to Ease SNAP/Food Stamp Application Process
(Pawtucket Times, February 24, 2009)
SNAP/Food Stamp applicants in Rhode Island will encounter shorter, simpler forms and will be able to apply by phone, and recipients will not have to prove continued eligibility for a year (previously, every six months). Applicants will not be disqualified if they own a vehicle or home, as the “asset test” will be eliminated; the rules also change the federal poverty level a family must meet for program eligibility from 130 to 165 percent. The state is also hiring nine employees to process applications, according to Gary Alexander, director of the Executive Office of Health and Human Services. “Rhode Island is working hard to ease access to food assistance for recently unemployed individuals, elderly populations, and individuals with disabilities,” said Alexander in a press release. “Program simplification is the quickest way to serve those most in need.” Henry Shelton, coordinator of Pawtucket’s George Wiley Center, which advocated for many of the changes put into effect, asked the state to hire 40 new workers, stating that the current employees already work overtime to process applications, and noting that the federal government pays for half of a SNAP/Food Stamp employee’s salary. Shelton said the state won’t be ready to process the thousands of new applications generated by the rule changes.
9. SNAP/Food Stamp Boost Positive Part of Economic Recovery Act
(MinnPost.com, February 24, 2009)
Tom Buis, president of the National Farmers Union, noted how the SNAP/Food Stamp funding increase in the economic recovery act will help farmers “who as a result of the economic downturn have experienced decreased demand for their products.” Although Rep. Collin Peterson (D-Minn.) opposed the bill, he supported the SNAP/Food Stamp boost. Chair of the House Agriculture Committee, Peterson said he would have voted for the package if it was “limited…to programs directly resulting in job creation and infrastructure projects, and for unemployment compensation and food stamps.” Also included in the act is $4.7 billion to the Commerce Department and $2.5 billion to USDA for rural broadband service expansion.
10. Emergency Food Provider Notes Importance of SNAP/Food Stamps
(Philadelphia Inquirer, March 5, 2009)
While food banks are important, states Philabundance’s executive director Bill Clark, the biggest aid available to combat hunger is the SNAP/Food Stamp program. Clark is supportive of President Obama’s desire to strengthen the program, stating “[h]unger is not a problem charities can solve alone.” Rachel Meeks, food stamp campaign manager for the Greater Philadelphia Coalition Against Hunger, noted the President’s $20 billion boost in SNAP/Food Stamp benefits over the next two years came during his first month in office. Demand on emergency food providers in the Philadelphia/New Jersey region has risen 31 percent over the past year.
11. Connecticut SNAP/Food Stamp Challenge Aims to Educate
(Hartford Courant, February 24, 2009)
Because of barriers including shame, confusing forms, and meager benefits, only two-thirds of eligible Connecticut residents apply for SNAP/Food Stamps. At the same time, End Hunger CT! reports that approximately 122,000 households in the state are food insecure – either hungry or at risk of hunger. Hunger extracts a toll, making employees less productive and breaking children’s concentration in class, writes Susan Campbell of the Courant. Hunger is a public health threat, she points out, as hungry people are more likely to get sick and may not be able to afford health insurance. The “Food Stamp Project” – this year titled “SNAP Into Action Against Hunger” – has aimed for the past two years to educate people about the need for SNAP/Food Stamps in the state by signing up participants to live for a week or a month on $3 a day for food – the average amount a SNAP/Food Stamp recipient receives. Rabbi Donna Berman, who heads up the project, is asking clergy across the state to preach about hunger to help kick off this year’s event.
12. SNAP/Food Stamps Help Family Dollar Stock to Soar
(Forbes, March 5, 2009)
An increase in sales of food and other consumable items helped raise Family Dollar store sales by 6.4 percent during the quarter ending February 28. The company’s stock has been rated a “Strong Buy” in Standard & Poor’s Equity Research, noting that the store’s acceptance of SNAP/Food Stamps helped its results.
13. Immigrant Community Struggles with Hunger and Unemployment in Massachusetts
(Berkshire Eagle, March 1, 2009)
The recession brings additional challenges to the immigrant population of Berkshire County in Massachusetts, as they face layoffs and have trouble putting food on the table. Immigrants make up 10 percent of the county’s population; across the country, Hispanic unemployment grew to 8 percent in December 2008. Local Berkshire County businesses are cutting employees. Gabriela Cruz’s extended family is experiencing reduced work hours, and recently a local food pantry turned her cousins away because they all lived at the same address. Language difficulties made it difficult for them to explain their situation. “People thought they were asking for extra,” said Cruz. SNAP/Food Stamps are hard to get these days. “People are calling the food stamp office, and nobody’s answering the phone,” said Gwendolyn Hampton, executive director of the Berkshire Resources for Integration of Diverse Groups and Education. “[T]hey’re saying it’ll take two to three weeks to return their phone call. Everybody is overwhelmed at this point – people are starting to think, What do we do?” Other immigrant programs across the state are experiencing budget cuts; a program providing citizenship and English classes lost $70,000 in funding, and the Refugee and Immigrant Safety Empowerment program, which deals with domestic violence, is in danger of folding.
14. Budget Cuts Threaten Maryland’s Breakfast Program
(Frederick Gazette, February 26, 2009)
Due to funding cuts for the Maryland Meals for Achievement Program (MMFA), Frederick County Public Schools may have to stop serving free classroom breakfasts for all students at four schools. The school system received $58,482 for MMFA last year, and the fiscal services office director expects only $24,387 this year; breakfasts in May and June are currently unfunded. The county’s poorest schools – Hillcrest, Lincoln and Waverly elementary schools and Heather Ridge Alternative school – participate in the program. MMFA provides money for breakfast to schools where 40 percent or more children qualify for free and reduced-price meals, an indicator of poverty. Educators say the program has helped with students stay alert in class, and has reduced tardiness, absences and suspensions. “Some kids come to school early because of the breakfast program,” said Cherri Dattoli, director of food services. “We are very concerned about the money for the program running out.”
15. Senator Honored for Aid to Children
(NBC26, March 5, 2009)
The Wisconsin School Psychologists Association’s “Friend of Children” award recently went to Senator Herb Kohl (D-WI) in honor of his work on behalf of the state’s children. Senator Kohl is Chairman of the Senate Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee, and instituted a school breakfast pilot program in Wisconsin, which provides grant money to help schools with breakfast start up costs. “The evidence is overwhelming that breakfast is tied to a student’s classroom performance,” he said. “Sadly, many kids have no choice but to come to school hungry.” In addition, Senator Kohl has been working to decrease the student-school counselor ratio from 476-1 in the state to the ratio recommended by the American School Counselor Association of 250-1.
16. Chicago Bears Quarterback Promotes School Breakfast
(Des Moines Register, March 6, 2009)
Chicago Bears quarterback Kyle Orton visited several schools in the Des Moines, Ia. area as part of National School Breakfast Week and the Take a Player to School Breakfast contest, sponsored by the Midwest Dairy Council, in cooperation with the NFL Players Association and the Des Moines schools. Orton ate breakfast with students, taking the message that breakfast helps children do better in school to Goodrell Middle School, Callana Middle School and Southeast Polk High School, and fielded questions from a student group that promotes physical fitness and healthy eating, titled “Fuel Up to Play ProMotion Kids.”
17. School Breakfast Company Makes Access to Breakfast Easier for Students
(Trading Markets, February 26, 2009)
ARAMARK Education provides food and nutrition services to 400 school districts across the nation, and commits itself to making access to school breakfast easier by offering “easy-to-implement” food service options in classrooms, cafeterias, and portable breakfast carts; it also offers more than 400 “grab and go” products. Dennis Maple, president of ARAMARK Education, noted the positive aspect of school breakfast. “There is a direct connection between eating breakfast and a child’s ability to learn,” he said. More children across the country can participate in school breakfast. According to FRAC’s School Breakfast Scorecard, if the number of children participating in breakfast nationwide rose from 46 to 60 for every 100 participating in lunch, nearly 2.5 million more children would be participating in the School Breakfast Program every day. States would also benefit from an additional $561 million in funding. ARAMARK recently introduced portable breakfast carts, which serve grab and go meals in hallways and other areas easy for students to access. Pilot testing of the carts showed an increase of 1,000 middle and high schools meals served.
School districts that have seen increases in participation by using alternative breakfast service methods:
Appleton School District (WI) increased breakfast participation at three elementary schools up to 300 percent once the schools instituted a nutrition break - featuring string cheese, blueberry muffins, cinnamon sticks, hard boiled eggs, fresh fruit, juices and milk - between first and second period.
Flowing Wells School District (AZ) saw breakfast participation at two elementary schools increase 60 percent since offering grab and go breakfast bags - featuring a hot breakfast sandwich, banana and milk - in January.
Lansing School District (MI) schools increased participation by 84 to 144 percent at seven schools by serving breakfast in the classroom.
Lorain City Schools (OH) increased participation 300 percent at Lorain Southview High School by having breakfast in the classroom; numbers jumped from 200 to 650 students participating per day.
18. New York State Gets TANF Boost
(www.ny.gov, February 26, 2009)
New York State’s SNAP/Food Stamp enrollment grew more than 15 percent in one year which made the state eligible for increased federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funds through that program’s Contingency Fund. This federal fund provides benefits and services to families during “unfavorable economic times.” The state received $162.4 million which can be used to support TANF-eligible services, including child care, job training, and homelessness prevention. “We are both helping more families put food on the table than ever before,” said David A. Hansell, Commissioner of the state’s Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance, “and we have successfully leveraged a new federal funding stream that will provide further support for those residents of our State most in danger of falling through the cracks during these difficult times.” New York increased its SNAP/Food Stamp numbers through easing access for working families, expanding eligibility, and launching a prescreening Web site – www.myBenefits.gov. This is the first year New York has been eligible for the TANF Contingency funds.
19. First Lady Serves Meals at D.C.’s Miriam’s Kitchen
(New York Times Caucus blog, March 5, 2009)
“My purpose here is to listen, learn and scoop some risotto,” said First Lady Michelle Obama recently as she served food to homeless men and women at Washington, D.C.’s Miriam’s Kitchen in order to encourage Americans to volunteer during the recession . “There is a moment in time when each and every one of us needs a helping hand,” said the First Lady, noting that Miriam’s Kitchen is “an example of what we can do as a country and a community to help folks when they’re down.” The organization serves breakfast every day and lunch once a week and relies solely on fresh local and organic foods for its menus; each year, the kitchen serves 4,000 homeless people and provides social service assistance.
20. Connecticut’s 2-1-1 Assistance Line Drowning in Callers
(Hartford Courant, March 6, 2009)
Workers answering Connecticut’s 2-1-1 calls are wondering if they can handle the sheer numbers of callers seeking assistance these days. In the past, the “poor and despondent” made up the bulk of callers, but now it’s the middle class adding to the load. One caller said he once earned six figures but now finds himself out of food, jobless, and searching for affordable housing. He spoke with John Crawford, one of the many call center employees who have knowledge of food pantry hours, temporary living quarters, dealing with evictions and SNAP/Food Stamp eligibility. “I tell them these days everyone is subsidized one way or another,” said Crawford. “If it is good enough for G.M., it is good enough for you.” The surge in callers began last summer, with many people trying to find ways to pay for their upcoming winter heating bills. Heat and utility calls are significantly up in number, as well as requests for information on SNAP/Food Stamps. In addition, callers are asking specific questions about the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, and how it will affect them. Still, there is a definite downcast tone to many calls. “There is a despair and a desperation that I haven’t heard in the past,” said Crawford. “Now I am hearing more, ‘I don’t know what I am going to do.’”
21. Positive Farm Economy Statistics Mask Reality of Tough Times
(Global Development and Environment Institute, Tufts University, February 2009)
Net farm income in 2008 was $89.3 billion according to USDA, 50 percent higher than the average for the previous ten years, and cash receipts rose 35 percent higher than 2006. Also according to USDA, average farm operator household income was 27 percent higher last year than in 2003, and average farm household income was nearly 28 percent higher than the U.S. average. However, these kinds of sector-wide statistics are misleading, wrote Timothy Wise of the Global Development and Environment Institute, and mask the reality of struggling farmers. High costs and reduced government support outpaced higher income from crop prices in 2007. An “unprecedented rise” in off-farm income brought farm household incomes higher, with the largest farms the only ones to benefit from higher crop prices. Crop prices are now falling, plunging farmers into a crisis. Dairy farmers are particularly hard hit, with dairy prices more than 50 percent below production costs.
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