TEFAP Alliance Blog

Foodlinks America - March 31, 2006

In this issue:

• TEFAP Web Site Updated
• Low Rates, Paperwork Cutting Meals for Children
• WIC Faces Convenience versus Cost Dilemma
• Commodity Purchases May Be In Jeopardy
• School Food News and Notes
• Numbers That Tell A Story
• Local Chefs Serve Shelter Children
• Reader Response and Clarification
• Obesity Round-Up
• Reports from the Field
• Small Bites

Foodlinks America is published 24 times a year by California Emergency Foodlink and distributed by Weinberg & Vauthier Consulting, 6412 CR 116, Burnet, Texas 78611; Zy Weinberg and Barbara Vauthier, Editors; email: bvauthier@281.com.

There is no copyright on Foodlinks America, so the information can be freely shared with colleagues and friends, though attribution for reprinted articles is appreciated. To receive the newsletter directly, contact Barbara Vauthier at: bvauthier@281.com.

TEFAP Web Site Updated

A web site for and about The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) is back and better than ever. Check out http://www.tefapalliance.org for a history of TEFAP, resources and links, and newsletter archives. Recommendations from visitors on how the site can be improved are welcomed!

Low Rates, Paperwork Cutting Meals for Children

New and onerous administrative requirements are driving day home providers and sponsor organizations from the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP), according to the National CACFP Forum and recent data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). “We need to stop the drop,” said Ed Mattson of San Francisco, a former USDA official and vice president of the advocacy group whose membership consists mainly of program sponsors. The CACFP is “one of our nation’s first lines of defense against the epidemic of childhood overweight,” he noted.

“In my world of CACFP, things are in great flux just now,” said Mattson. “Recent program integrity changes have severely impacted our ability to survive. In California, we have lost approximately 40 percent of the family child care sponsors and non-low-income … homes since 1997.”

Child care providers in the CACFP are reimbursed for providing nutritious meals and snacks served to children in their care. In 1996, Congress changed meal reimbursements to a two-tiered system that more tightly restricts benefits to low-income providers and children. Reimbursement rates for homes that are not located in lower-income neighborhoods or run by low-income providers were cut in half. As a result, the number of homes participating in the CACFP has dropped 23 percent in the past 10 years, and the number of children served has declined, too, from just over one million in 1996 to under 900,000 in 2005, according to figures from USDA.

The number of sponsors — public or private non-profit organizations that recruit and enroll the homes, train and monitor for compliance, and handle the reimbursement claims and payments — is also dwindling. “Sponsoring organizations here in California each day endeavor to remain financially solvent and in regulatory compliance, while administrative costs have skyrocketed and bureaucratic micromanagement threatens to undermine [the program],” Mattson said.

In a just-released report USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS) has concluded that sponsor drop-out was related to administrative costs. “Institution of the two-tiered system resulted in targeting the family childcare aspect of the CACFP more towards low-income providers and children,” the ERS study found. “However, [the two-tiered system] added to sponsors’ administrative responsibilities, with sponsors rating tiering determinations as their most burdensome duties.” To read the report, go to: http://www.ers.usda.gov/Publications/CCR16/.

Mattson lamented that the character of the program has changed. “Sponsors nationwide are so overwhelmed with paperwork that we have lost sight of our original vision, which was to ensure that all children in licensed care settings receive nutritious meals.”

WIC Faces Convenience versus Cost Dilemma

The WIC Program is facing a legal and financial dilemma over the issue of “WIC-only” stores, food stores that cater exclusively to low-income women in WIC but charge more than regular grocery stores, thereby driving up the cost of the program.

The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) is a $5 billion a year effort that provides nutritious food to eight million people, including nearly half of all infants born in the United States. Participants receive vouchers for items such as infant formula, juice, eggs, milk, cheese, and dry beans. WIC-only stores, which operate in 21 states, accept only WIC vouchers for the food and often charge the government the maximum price allowed. At issue is whether WIC-only stores receive a disproportionate amount of federal reimbursement or whether they offer WIC participants a special service and convenience that is worth the extra price.

“We consistently find that prices charged in WIC-only stores are higher, on average, than in other stores,” said Linnea Sallack, director of the WIC Program in California. “If food prices are high, for whatever reason, it means that our federal grant cannot go as far and cannot serve as many people.” Studies have found that prices at WIC-only stores run about 16 percent higher than at conventional markets and that the percentage of reimbursements at or within five percent of the maximum allowable amount is high. WIC-Only stores are estimated to increase WIC food costs in California alone by $37 million a year.

But the backers of WIC-only stores say they offer dignity and convenience for clients. They are often located near WIC clinics and offices, helping low-income families with limited transportation. Employees, often former WIC participants themselves, understand the program and its requirements. And clients can shop in a friendlier atmosphere. “They don’t have to worry about holding other customers up in line, or being embarrassed by having the coupons,” explained Larry Criswell, who owns a WIC-only store in Dallas, Texas. “Everybody in the store is going to be part of the program.”

Congress responded to the WIC-only issue by passing laws in 2004 to increase price competition at existing stores and to limit enrollment of new ones in the program. Federal cost containment regulations, scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2006, have been temporarily delayed, as a judge in Washington, D.C. decides whether the government adequately considered the position of store owners as small businesspeople.

In the meantime, WIC-only operators are hanging on. “We’re on the verge of extinction, if something doesn’t happen for us,” lamented Mr. Criswell. Added John Callahan, a WIC-only vendor in San Antonio: “If they want Wal-Mart prices, and nothing else, then they [government officials] should quit pretending. Just make Wal-Mart the exclusive WIC vendor and be done with it.”

Commodity Purchases May Be In Jeopardy

The Bush Administration’s proposal to eliminate funding for the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP) may be a harbinger of a broader government strategy to reduce commodity purchases, says a key lobbyist for the program.

Jean Jones, senior policy and research counsel for America’s Second Harvest and former head of the food and agricultural section of the Congressional Research Service, told a reporter on February 28 that ending the CSFP would result in decreased government community purchases, especially from diary, peanut, and fruit and vegetable farmers. Their products – such as cheese, peanut butter, and canned fruits and vegetables – are key components of the CSFP food package.

“In the context of past history, when President Nixon had a plan to reduce farm program spending, he started with cuts in commodity programs,” Jones told Foodlinks America. She referred to the status of donation programs as a “bellwether” for overall agricultural policy. “All farmers should be concerned about anything that would get rid of outlets for what they produce,” Jones said. “It sends a signal the Administration is going to pare back the price support programs.”

As recently noted in this newsletter, the purchasing cutbacks have already started. The director of food distribution at the U.S. Department of Agriculture explained that one reason fewer bonus items are being directed to The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) is that the Office of the Chief Economist, which must authorize purchases of surplus production, is now requiring additional documentation before approving a bonus buy. “The bar has been raised,” she noted.

School Food News and Notes

Early eating causes poor habits: Early lunch periods lead to less nutritious food selections by students, researchers at Pennsylvania State University have concluded after surveying high schools across the state. Schools with lunch periods starting at 10:30 a.m. or earlier were found to have higher a la carte sales than later lunch periods. A la carte sales are single-item purchases, typically pizzas, hamburgers, cookies, and pastries.

The early lunch hours appeared to foster more snacking. “When this kind of lunch isn’t normal eating behavior, kids develop certain survival strategies through the rest of the day,” said Claudia Probert, a nutrition professor at Penn State who led the study. Probert and her colleagues did not analyze early-lunch student purchases, but noted “there is a lot of chip and soda eating going on.”

The study looked at data from 228 high schools, 55 of which had lunch periods starting at 10:30 a.m. or earlier. Thirty-five percent of the schools found to have high a la carte sales were in the early lunch bunch. To learn more, see: http://live.psu.edu/story/15846.

In their own words: To help local education agencies better communicate information about school meal programs to parents and children, the 2004 Child Nutrition Act amendments require that, “Any communication with a household … shall be in an understandable and uniform format and, to the maximum extent practicable, in a language that parents and legal guardians can understand.” A survey of state agencies by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) last year identified 24 languages for which translated school meal information would be helpful.

Consequently, USDA has announced that it has begun developing the National School Lunch prototype application and related materials, including certification and verification procedures, in all 24 languages. Information in at least five of these languages should be ready by the start of the 2006-2007 school year.

In addition to existing materials in English and Spanish, USDA will draft information in: Russian, Vietnamese, Mandarin Chinese, Japanese, Serbo-Croatian, Arabic, Korean, Somali, Cambodian/Khmer, French, Hmong, Haitian Creole, Laotian, Polish, Portuguese, Sudanese, Thai, Urdu, Hindi, Kurdish, Farsi, Greek, Samoan, and Tagalog.

Numbers That Tell A Story

Participation in federal nutrition assistance for eight key programs, along with other key indicators, are provided in one place in the annual “State of the States: A Profile of Food and Nutrition Programs Across the Nation,” released on March 15, 2006 by the Food Research and Action Center (FRAC) in Washington, D.C. The report highlights progress in improving access to some programs while identifying major gaps in others.

“Food stamps, school meals, and other national nutrition programs are proven ‘responders’: they provide nutritious food to those in need, whether the need is driven by a weak and changing economy or by natural disaster,” said FRAC President Jim Weill. “Nonetheless, the programs could be reaching far more vulnerable people and providing them more adequate benefits.” Moreover, Administration proposals to eliminate commodities for nearly half a million elderly and to reduce food stamp rolls by 300,000 “are the wrong choices,” Weill stated. “Instead, we should be building on the success of the nation’s nutrition programs so that no one in America goes hungry.”
The federal nutrition programs profiled are: Food Stamps, School Lunch, School Breakfast, Summer Food, the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP), WIC, The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP), and the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP). The report also details economic and social indicators such as food insecurity, poverty, unemployment, and minimum wage levels.
Weill emphasized that the programs are working well. “Food stamps and the child nutrition programs were important ‘responders’ in the wake of Hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma,” Weill said. “Food stamps alone provided this past autumn about $1 billion in aid that helped victims feed their families and boosted economies in the hardest hit areas.”
To view the report, go to: http://www.frac.org/State_Of_States/2006/2006_SOS_Report.pdf.
Local Chefs Serve Shelter Children

They are kids from families where violence, abuse, and neglect are common. Their future is uncertain, as they face the foster care system.

But at least four times a week, children at the Austin Children’s Shelter in Austin, Texas get special attention, because each week some of the city’s best-known chefs cook meals for the children at the shelter, according to a column in the March 12, 2006 Austin American-Statesman.

The chefs donate both the food and their time, actions that deeply affect the children. “I think it nurtures their souls, knowing that these chefs are volunteering and not being paid to do this,” said shelter executive director Gena Van Osselaer.

The program started in 1999, when executive chef Elmar Prambs of the local Four Seasons hotel attended an event at the shelter and was moved by the plight of the children, all of whom had been removed from their homes and were awaiting placement elsewhere. Prambs began cooking for the 40-plus kids once a week. Three years ago, he recruited other area chefs to join him. The menus are kid-friendly – macaroni and cheese, chicken tenders, beef stew, and healthy servings of fruits and vegetables.

The chefs love volunteering at the shelter. “It kind of breaks your heart, but hopefully you bring a little joy into their lives,” said Prambs. Added Phil Bouza, head chef at Barton Creek Resort, “How could you not like doing it? Those kids have bigger problems than I have. It makes everybody feel good.”

Reader Response and Clarification

Editor’s Note: The following email was received in response to the “Innovative CSA Being Tested in Maine” article in the last issue of Foodlinks America.

I’m really excited to see this. I run a timebank in the Denver/Boulder Colorado area. I’d like to clear up that time dollars are NOT barter. This is important for two reasons. First, time dollars can be traded with ANYONE in the system for anything that is offered. Second because the exchange is time and has no monetary value or varying monetary value, it is tax free – that is NOT true of barter.

Time dollars offer a wonderful way of creating community, expanding resources, and encouraging volunteerism and they can be used in a variety of creative ways. Please visit our web site at: http://www.time-exchange.net. 

I’d be delighted to talk to anyone who is interested in applying this technique. I’d also recommend the book, “No more Throw Away People” by Edgar Cahn.

Kathryn Alexander
Time Exchange Network
Lodo Denver, Colorado
kaelxandra@comcast.net 
 phone : 303-825-3457 or Direct line: 303-440-5833

Obesity Round-Up

A healthy perception: Nearly two-thirds of American adults consider themselves to be healthy eaters and almost half say they follow a health-conscious diet. The findings, based on a survey of some 1,040 people conducted on-line in January 2006, recorded healthier habits among older, wealthier, and better educated adults.

Three-quarters (75 percent) of adults age 55 and over said they were healthy eaters, compared to 47 percent of those in the 18 to 34 age group. Those with incomes over $75,000 were also more likely – at 74 percent – to judge themselves health eaters. College graduates (28 percent) and those with some college education (23 percent) were more likely to say they ate a “balanced diet” than those with a high school education or less (12 percent).

For additional details on the survey, go to: http://www.harrisinteractive.com/news/allnewsbydate.asp?NewsID=1026.

Child obesity in the states analyzed: The problem of obesity and overweight among children and youth is not an equal problem for all families, as the incidence varies by gender, race, income, and geography. A “Data Snapshot” of “State Differences in Rates of Overweight or Obese Youth” is now available from the Annie E. Casey Foundation in Baltimore as part of its KIDS COUNT analysis in the 2003 National Survey of Children’s Health.

The Foundation’s number-crunching found that “the eight states with the highest rates of overweight or obese youth also have high rates of childhood poverty and generally score low on measures of child well-being.” The District of Columbia, at 40 percent, had the highest rate of 10 to 17-year-olds overweight or obese, and was followed by Kentucky (38 percent), Mississippi (37 percent), West Virginia, South Carolina, and Louisiana (all 36 percent) and Alabama, Tennessee, and Delaware (all 35 percent).

For more information, see: http://www.aecf.org/kidscount/sld/snapshot.jsp.

Poverty contributes to obesity for Black women: The odds for obesity among African American women in rural North Carolina were twice as high if the came from a low socioeconomic background during their childhood, according to a study conducted by researchers from the University of North Carolina and the University of Michigan and published in the March 2006 issue of the American Journal of Public Health.

Investigators reviewed the education occupation, employment status, and home ownership status of 679 women in Pitt County, North Carolina and concluded that, “Socioeconomic deprivation in childhood was a strong predictor of adulthood obesity in this community sample of African American women.” To learn more, see: http://www.ajph.org/cgi/content/abstract/96/3/554.

Reports from the Field

• The Duluth, Minnesota News Tribune, in the “Northland” at the top of the continental United States, noted that the demand for emergency food from local food shelves was intensifying in a March 8, 2006 story:

The sign above the window where food is handed out at Churches United in Ministry’s First Avenue West food shelf in Duluth tells the story.

“Food shelf packagers and interviewers are volunteers. We enjoy our work but sometimes we get behind and things get hectic. We are doing our best so please be patient with us,” the sign reads.

If an ongoing trend continues, the wait for food is likely to increase for many of the region’s working poor, Colleen Moriarty said Tuesday.

“Food has become an option for many families in our state,” said Moriarty, the executive director of Hunger Solutions Minnesota.

In five years, demand for emergency food resources, including soup kitchens and food banks, has steadily increased in Minnesota and the region, Moriarty said during a news conference highlighting a March campaign to raise money and food. Statewide, food shelf use has increased 45 percent since 2000, Moriarty said.

For those who use Northland food shelves, visits have increased from an average of 4.2 per year in 2000 to six visits per year in 2005, said Shaye Moris, the executive director of Second Harvest Northern Lakes Food Bank.

Meanwhile, soup kitchen visits in Duluth have increased from 5.4 visits per month in 2000 to 10 visits per month in 2005. What once was “emergency food” has rapidly become a regular supplement for many people who are unable to afford food, Moris said.
More families are regularly cutting meals or reducing the portions they eat and feed their children, Moris said.

“These are just some of the ways our neighbors are finding to make ends meet on a monthly basis,” said Sue Estee, the executive director of the Second Harvest North Central Food Bank in Grand Rapids.

The problem of hunger is complicated and it’s compounded by related social issues in the region including living wage job and affordable housing shortages, said Meg Kearns, the director of CHUM’s food shelf.
“There is no such thing as an isolated issue,” Kearns said.

A new report, “The State of Hunger in Minnesota 2005,” issued by Hunger Solutions Minnesota, a broad coalition of groups fighting hunger statewide, this week shows the dramatic increases in food demand. But Kearns and her workers and volunteers see faces behind the numbers every day, she said.

Faces such as Teak Bowers’.

Bowers worked most of her life until she become disabled from heart diseases, diabetes and vertigo, she said.

The cost of her medicine, including five daily injections, makes it impossible for her to also afford food. Bowers uses CHUM’s food shelf once a month, she said. Without the food CHUM provides, she and others would often go without eating, she said.

“Without these food shelves, a lot of people would suffer,” Bowers said. “Not suffer in a way that they would just stop existing, but suffer everyday pain. And if you’ve never gone hungry, you don’t know what I’m talking about. If you’ve never missed a meal, you don’t know what I’m talking about.”

Small Bites

Lots of energy: Americans bought 42 million pounds worth of energy bars in 2004, four percent higher than the year before.

But chips rule: In the same year, the also bought 872 million pounds of potato chips.

A pear of producing states: Oregon and Washington produce 84 percent of the fresh pers grown in the United States.

How many nuts does it take? : To make a 12-ounce jar of peanut butter – 540, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Going nuts all year: The average American consumes more than six pounds of peanut butter and peanut butter products a year.

Spending more for food: Consumer expenditures for food as a percentage of before tax income in 2004 were: Latinos, 13.5 percent; African Americans, 11,0 percent; and Whites, 10.3 percent.

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