FRAC Chat

Every year on October 16, World Food Day, founded in 1979 by the United Nations, aims to raise awareness of hunger and malnutrition, and create an opportunity to promote healthy diets for all. Opportunities to combat hunger and improve nutrition cannot be for a short-term fix. Sustainable solutions are needed. 

During the COVID-19 pandemic, people living in America learned very quickly that our own food supply chain is far from sustainable and is in fact quite frail, and that our safety net is tattered. Thankfully, we had the resources to create additional supports, such as Emergency Allotments for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), expanded and inclusive child tax credits, and healthy free school meals for all students, for a true safety net.  

This National School Lunch Week, the Food Research & Action Center (FRAC) is rallying support for a crucial initiative: a nationwide Healthy School Meals for All policy. This would ensure all students have access to the nutritious school meals they need to learn and thrive.

Soon, D-SNAP will help those impacted by Hurricane Helene — heralded as the worst hurricane of the modern era.5 With each passing year, people in America have experienced some of the costliest and most destructive storms on record.6 The climate crisis is increasing the frequency, intensity, and destruction of extreme weather events across the U.S.7

Hunger is compounded by disasters and emergencies that affect food distribution, including extreme weather events, and D-SNAP fills the gap by providing participants with emergency benefits for food.

The latest U.S. Census Bureau and food security reports reminded me of this scene. The reports showed that, in 2023, 42.8 million people lived in poverty and 47.4 million lived in households struggling with food insecurity. With an increase of households impacted by food insecurity and significant levels of poverty continuing in the wealthiest, most powerful nation in world history, we have a problem we should all be anxious about.

How is it that, in the land of plenty, all that these reports show is that we have plenty of poverty and hunger?

This is why the Food Research & Action Center (FRAC) is working on solutions to strengthen federal programs to end poverty-related hunger in America.

Back-to-school season is in full swing. Students and families across the country are meeting new teachers, adjusting to new classrooms and routines, and getting out backpacks and school supplies.

Along with pencils, markers, glue sticks and gym shoes, there is another back-to-school essential, healthy food to fuel student achievement.

Eight states — California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, and Vermont — have passed Healthy School Meals for All policies so schools can offer all students school breakfast and lunch at no cost to families. These policies reduce childhood food insecurity, stretch family budgets, and ensure all children are hunger-free and ready to get the most out of their school day.