1. Report: County-Level Estimates of Low-Income Households’ Food Stamp Receipt
(National Priorities Project , August 14, 2007)

The National Priorities Project released county-by-county estimates of the percentage of low-income residents receiving food stamps. The NPP measure complements other estimates of food stamp usage but differs from and does not replace them. Because NPP does not take into account non-income factors that affect program eligibility (such as citizenship status or assets), it does not estimate participation rates among food stamp eligible people.  For California, where recipients of Supplemental Security Income (SSI) get a monetary allowance for food but not food stamps, NPP has calculated low-income receipt of food stamps under alternative methodologies.

See table.     

For more information on gaps in Food Stamp Program coverage and links to official USDA estimates of Food Stamp Program participation rates, visit FRAC's Web site .       

2. Opinion: Better funding will mean better nutrition

(St. Louis Post-Dispatch, August 20, 2007)

The Food Stamp Program is a “well-designed, well-run government program that helps the people it was designed to help, and in ways that benefit everyone,” writes Christine Woody, Hunger Task Force Coordinator for the Missouri Association for Social Welfare. Woody urges that the Senate pass the 2007 Farm Bill as approved by the House. The bill contains a $4 billion increase over five years in the Food Stamp Program, and would make it easier for low-income people to access benefits. It would also, as she points out, begin to address the inadequacy of benefit levels. “For the first time in 30 years, for example, many elderly people who receive only the $10 minimum monthly benefit would get $16,” said Woody.

3. Opinion: Investment in education can help overcome poverty, hunger

(Kennebec Journal, August 15, 2007)

Many retired and disabled people are forced to make difficult choices like paying a utility bill or buying food, according to John C. Applin, director of a homeless shelter and soup kitchen. He writes that many people can barely only make ends meet by eating at a soup kitchen or getting food from a food bank. Applin believes that the cycle of hunger, homelessness and poverty can be fixed if money is invested to help more people attain education, which could lead to a meaningful job and help many Americans overcome poverty.

4. Americans adjust perceptions of normal body weight, says study

(Reuters, August 7, 2007)

Americans have adjusted their perception of what is a normal body weight as the overall population’s weight has increased, according to economic researchers from Florida State University and the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. “This is a social force that we are trying to document because the rise in obesity has occurred so rapidly over the past 30 years,” said Frank Heiland, an assistant professor of economics at Florida State University. “Medically speaking, most agree this trend is a dangerous one because of its connection to diabetes, cancer and other diseases.”

5. Skyrocketing milk prices may force schools to alter menus, say analysts

(CNN.com, August 10, 2007)

School cafeteria budgets, faced with rapidly increasing milk prices, may try to offset costs by substituting school menu items with less expensive fruits and vegetables, analysts say. “If milk prices do go up in a big way, certainly people who run school meal programs will notice it," said Joanne Guthrie, assistant deputy director for the Nutrition in the Food Assistance and Nutrition Research Program. “Just as a family that buys milk regularly would notice it and somehow adapt – schools would too.” Federal school lunch subsidies will not be adjusted until Fall 2008 at the earliest, and the average price of milk, which USDA estimated to be $3.80 in July, may continue to rise due to shortages in Europe and Australia and an increasing demand for ethanol.

6. Some schools face budget concerns in trying to provide more nutritious options to students

(The Post-Journal , August 14, 2007)

Some schools face difficulties trying to provide nutritious food options to students while staying within their budget. “It is a little more costly to provide fresh fruit and vegetables and whole grain bread than it is if you just want to go the process way,’’ said Sue Rater, a school cafeteria manager at Clymer Central School in New York. “We are finding ways to make healthier meals and help the children make healthier choices.” The number of overweight children in the U.S. has increased dramatically in the past four decades, according to a recent study by the Center for Weight and Health at the University of California-Berkeley. The study found that the number of overweight children between the ages of 6 and 17 increased from 4 percent in the 1960s to more than 15 percent by 2000.

7. Children who eat breakfast may perform better in school

(The Garden City Telegram , August 14, 2007)

Children who eat breakfast typically pay more attention in class and process information more effectively, said Sandy Procter, a nutrition specialist at Kansas State University. Procter, who cited research from FRAC, also said that eating breakfast is important for children and families as they prepare for the upcoming school year.

8.Ohio school district considers serving free breakfast to all elementary students

(Middletown Journal, August 15, 2007)

School officials in Franklin, Ohio are considering offering free breakfasts to all elementary school students in the district. Students who eat school breakfast perform better in school and have decreased discipline problems, fewer visits to the school nurse, and increased school attendance, according to FRAC. The breakfast program could be reimbursed with state and federal money and would be offered at no cost to the schools, said Jeff Johnson, the district’s business manager.

9.Ohio residents protest lack of grocery store in neighborhood

(Akron Beacon Journal, August 15, 2007)

Some residents of West Akron, Ohio carried signs that read “Where’s the Beef?” and “Walgreen’s is not a grocery store” to protest the lack of a grocery store in their community. “We are not miracle makers,'' said Joe Albrecht, a retail properties manager. “If there is no grocery store to be had, we can't materialize it out of thin air.” The neighborhood’s grocery store was torn down in August 2005 to make room for a new library building and parking space. ''We need [a grocery store] so bad,'' said Cherie Odum, who was one of the protesters.

10. Many WIC participants use farmers’ markets coupons in Massachusetts

(The Republican , August 15, 2007)

About 108,000 Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program participants receive farmers’ market coupons annually in Massachusetts, said Hermine Charkoudian, director of a WIC program in the state. “One of the goals of the WIC program is to encourage healthy food choices for the children that we serve,” said nutritionist Gail Domeracki. “These choices include fruits and vegetables. General recommendations for children 2 to 5 years are three servings of vegetables and two servings of fruits a day. For our WIC moms and dads, getting the fruit portions isn't usually the problem. Getting those servings of veggies is the bigger challenge.” WIC participants can use the coupons to purchase fresh fruit and vegetables at local farmers’ markets through the end of October.