National Hunger Hotline

NEWS

A father from central Florida recently called the Hotline in search of assistance. The man was laid off from his job a few months ago and has not been able to receive assistance because his unemployment benefits exceeded income limits. The man was hit with an expected turn of fate when his young child became ill, forcing him to sell his truck, drain his savings account and remove all the equity from his home to pay the medical bills because the family did not qualify for Medicaid.

The advocate was able to find two local pantries within five miles of his home. The advocate explained that he should apply for the Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) through his local food bank as well as seek the resources at St. Vincent de Paul Society.

The man audibly began to cry, saying that he “hates having to tell [my] little girl, ‘no, daddy can’t buy you a hamburger right now.’”

The National Hunger Hotline 1-866-3 HUNGRY and 1-877-8 HAMBRE (1-866-348-6479 and 1-877-842-6273) refers people in need of emergency food assistance to food pantries, government programs, and model grassroots organizations that work to improve access to healthy, nutritious food, and build self-reliance. Help is available on Monday through Friday from 9am-6pm EST. Hablamos español.

ADVOCACY

A Mixed Bag: Considerations on Backpack Programs and Family Dynamics

This article is based on opinions from staff at food banks around the country. If you have comments or questions, please email us at nhc@whyhunger.org

It is a traumatizing situation as a young child to be without food. You see the fear in the faces of your mother and father, despairing that they cannot feed their children. You feel afraid, too, because your parents can’t provide for you.

—Peter Kimeu, “Remembering a Hungry Childhood,” New York Times, 9/10/11

Backpack programs seem like a great thing on the surface. Most of them serve the youngest, most at-risk kids. And of course that makes everybody feel good because who is more deserving than kids? Who can beat those smiling faces when you hand them a bag of food? But there are a number of things to consider when designing a backpack program.

• Because they generally only target one child in a household, they may be setting that child up to be the only child or family member with food for the weekend. The recipient may be set up for abuse by an older sibling or parent who will take the food or they may just feel guilty for having been chosen to be the one who is fed.

• Depending on where the programs are located, someone has to decide who the most deserving children are. Once they have been chosen, then they will be singled out to receive a bag of food at the end of the school week. This can easily set them up to be a target of ridicule by their classmates.

• The act of giving kids food to take home changes the family dynamic and usurps a parent’s role of being the provider. An emergency food box is usually acquired by a parent. Meals eaten at school, a youth program or a summer food site do not have the same effect.

• Because of the need to use primarily non-perishable foods, the products are not always the most nutritious. They often include microwaveable entrees sent home with kids too young to use the microwave and who may not even have a microwave available. When perishable products are provided, they may not be handled safely and could become a health risk.

• The products provided are not easily acquired through many food bank networks and may need to be purchased. The type of products distributed (individual cereals and entrees, aseptic milk, juice, etc.) are expensive, making backpacks a more costly hunger assistance program and threatening the sustainability of such programs. The programs are difficult to evaluate. Backpack programs report a low rate of return on evaluations and seldom get constructive feedback. The kids receiving the food are not good evaluators and are unlikely to report what really happens to the food. A parent is seldom going to critique any program that is feeding a child in need.

Are these good enough reasons to not do the program? That is something for each group to decide. Feeding little children is a very seductive thing. Consider some alternatives. One such program distributes bags of supplemental food to families every two weeks. The bag contains 10-15 pounds of food that can be eaten by the whole family and is given to the parent at the bus stop or when a child is picked up. For example, a bag may contain a jar of peanut butter or block of cheese, bread, granola bars, fresh produce, etc. There are ways to make sure that children are fed without compromising them or their family dynamic. It just takes a little creativity.

RESOURCES

Afterschool Meals

FRAC is excited to introduce its new Afterschool Meals Guide, a helpful online resource to ensure that more afterschool programs are able to receive federal funding to provide healthy meals to children when the school day ends. Intended for afterschool programs, sponsors, state agencies, anti-hunger advocates and anyone interested in making nutritious meals available to children who need them, the guide walks through the basics of the Afterschool Meal Program, offers tips on how to get it started, and shares strategies on how to make it a success.The Afterschool Meal Program is an exciting new opportunity available in every state to fund nutritious meals for children in afterschool programming. The federal funding comes through the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP), and the meals can help reduce childhood hunger and improve nutrition.

USDA Updates

Call Centers Catalogued

Millions of Americans have joined SNAP in recent months for the first time and they, understandably, have millions of questions about basic program operations, the status of their application and benefits, complaints, etc. The bulk of SNAP participants communicate by telephone and as a result, most states have established centralized call centers to respond to participant needs and issues.

Instructive information on call centers and their operations are discussed in detail in a 209-page guide from USDA titled “SNAP Contact/Call Center Roles and Services.” The manual includes chapters on business processes and scope, technology, staffing, management practices to ensure customer service, and more. For further information, review the guide by selecting number 25 from among the fiscal year 2011 entries.

Two CACFP At-Risk Afterschool Meals Webinars Remain!

Monday, September 19th 3-4pm and Thursday, September 22nd 2-3pm EST

Click here to register.

Several references and handouts were available during the webinar session. The webinar handouts are included as links below, with additional links to other helpful resources.

Webinar Handout: At-Risk Afterschool Meals Handbook and At-Risk Afterschool Meals Brochure. Additional Resources/Websites: Afterschool Programs and Nutrition and Nutrition Education.

The webinar handouts are included as links below, with additional links to other helpful resources.

To get started with this program, or for any questions, please contact your CACFP State Agency.

All sessions are being recorded and will soon be available on the USDA Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) website.

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Guidance on Non-Citizen Eligibility

On Tuesday, September 27th from 2-3pm EST USDA will present a webinar on the newly updated Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Guidance on Non-Citizen Eligibility. The SNAP policy branch will give an overview of the updated guidance and answer questions about the non-citizen eligibility policies.

WIC Prescreening Tool Is Now Online

The Food and Nutrition Service is pleased to announce that the WIC Prescreening Tool is now available on the USDA/FNS website. The tool is a web-based application intended to help potential WIC applicants determine if they are likely to be eligible for WIC benefits. It asks users to complete a series of questions regarding their categorical, residential and income eligibility for WIC benefits. Based on their responses to these questions, users are informed that they “may be eligible” or “may not be eligible” for WIC benefits. Users who are likely to be eligible to receive WIC benefits are provided with State-specific contact information and are encouraged to make a certification appointment with their WIC local agencies. Additionally, users are provided with a printable summary of their responses and a list of examples of the documentation that is required at an initial certification appointment.

The WIC Prescreening Tool is now accessible to all internet users via the “Am I Eligible?” links on the WIC homepage. It may also be accessed directly at WIC Prescreening Tool. The tool is currently available in English, Spanish, and Chinese. More languages are expected to be added in the near future.

SNAP Gardens

Did you know about the organization Food Stamps Grow Gardens? More info coming in upcoming newsletters, but for a sneak preview of what SNAP Gardens is building, please see SNAP Gardens.

CONFERENCES

Food Justice: Honoring our Roots, Growing the Movement

Over the past 15 years, CFSC has worked to catalyze a broad and far-reaching food systems movement. Each year, CFSC brings people together to learn from each other and to shape the future of our movement. CFSC held its first conference with 170 attendees in Los Angeles in 1997 and this year they return to California for “Food Justice: Honoring our Roots, Growing the Movement.”

CFSC and the movement have grown exponentially, and so has the annual conference! 1,200 participants are expected this November 5 – 8 in Oakland, CA from almost every state, many Canadian provinces, and five continents. The California Food and Justice Coalition and Food First will be the hosts and have teamed up with many Bay Area organizations to help CFSC put on a fantastic event.

The conference will begin with two days of pre-conference short courses and Food Justice Tours throughout the Bay Area. The main conference begins Sunday morning and runs through Tuesday afternoon featuring 66 skill building and educational workshops, 20 networking sessions, 5 CFSC Member committee meetings, and a poster session.

Register at CFSC Conference.

CONTACT US

Have you had any recent successes at your food pantry that you want to share? What challenges are you facing? Is there anything that you want to learn more about? We want to hear from you! Email us.