TEFAP Alliance Blog

Foodlinks America - July 21, 2006

In this issue:

· Human Services Funding Moves Ahead; CFNP Left Behind
· Proposed Budget Bill Could Generate Huge Cuts
· Congressional Timetable Running Out
· Poverty Exacerbated by Market Forces
· Summer Food Numbers Continue to Drop
· Obesity Round-Up
· Child Nutrition Reimbursement Rates Updated
· Community Food Project Profile: Bowdoinham, Maine
· Small Bites
· Time for a Summer Break

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

Foodlinks America is not copyrighted, so the information can be freely shared with colleagues and friends, though attribution for reprinted articles is appreciated. For archived issues of Foodlinks America, go to: www.tefapalliance.org. To request a free subscription to the newsletter or to submit story ideas, contact Barbara Vauthier at: bvauthier@281.com.

Human Services Funding Moves Ahead; CFNP Left Behind

The full Senate Appropriations Committee, acting on July 20, 2006, reported out a fiscal year 2007 appropriations bill for the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services (HHS), and Education. In the HHS portion of the bill, H.R. 5647, the Committee restored funding for the Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) to its current level of $630 million. The CSBG was proposed for elimination in President Bush’s fiscal year 2007 budget and the House of Representatives made a $200 million cut, reducing CSBG funding to $430 million.

However, the Community Food and Nutrition Program (CFNP), an adjunct of the CSBG, received no appropriation in the Committee bill. “CFNP was zeroed out,” said Ellen Teller of the Food Research and Action Center in Washington, D.C. “This is not good,” she added. The House has also failed to provide funding for the CFNP next year and, although the program’s authorization remains in place, it will be difficult to generate new funding for it in the current budget climate.

Proposed Budget Bill Could Generate Huge Cuts

Sweeping legislation that would substantially change federal budget rules and procedures was endorsed by the Senate Budget Committee on June 20, 2006 in a straight party-line vote. The bill, known as the “Stop Over Spending Act of 2006,” or S. 3521, would impose caps on discretionary program spending, set fixed deficit targets that could trigger automatic, across-the-board cuts in entitlement programs, establish new definitions for the financing of Medicare and Medicaid programs, create a “fast track” legislative authority to expedite cuts, and give the President line-item veto authority.

The bill, introduced by Budget Committee chairman Judd Gregg (R-NH) and 28 Republican co-sponsors, including Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN), would dramatically alter the way Congress makes annual federal spending priorities. If implemented as currently proposed, the bill could result in automatic cuts of $48 billion in food stamps and $20 billion in child nutrition programs over the next 10 years. On the other hand, tax cuts, defense appropriations, and funding for the war in Iraq would not be subject to any fiscal discipline.

“The GOP budget process bill is an acknowledgment by the Republican Majority that they have failed to lead the nation on fiscal matters,” claimed Senator Kent Conrad of North Dakota, the ranking Democrat on the Budget Committee. “They have squandered the surplus and run up large deficits. So now they are turning to a budget process proposal to appear fiscally responsible.”

“This proposal really represents an abdication of responsibility – multi-year caps on discretionary spending that the GOP has disregarded in the past, automatic spending cuts without regard to priorities or fairness, partisan entitlement and spending commissions that do the work of Congress, budgeting every two years instead of one, a line item veto that allows the President to make decisions for Congress, and a series of changes to the budget resolution and reconciliation process that would further undermine budget transparency and fiscal responsibility,” Conrad added.

The bill, if brought to the floor this summer, will likely face a Democratic filibuster.

Congressional Timetable Running Out

Very little time remains in the 109th Congress to make decisions about funding for next year and other matters, if legislators adhere to their preferred timetable. Both the House and Senate aim to adjourn the current session on October 6, 2006, leaving them barely a month to campaign for the November 7 elections.

Between now (July 21) and October 6, only 24 days are scheduled for the House of Representatives to meet and vote on government business. The Senate has added a few extra days, but also will have less than a month of work time before the planned adjournment. The traditional month-long August recess – also referred to as the “Summer District Work Period” – begins July 31 in the House and August 7 in the Senate, and continues until September 5, when Congress reconvenes after Labor Day.

Meanwhile, no budget resolution for 2007 has been enacted and none of the 12 regular appropriations bills for fiscal year 2007 have passed Congress, leading to speculation that there will be an omnibus “catchall” bill this fall. Efforts to extend or renew the Farm Bill, which contains funding for the Food Stamp Program, commodity programs, and other nutrition assistance, is also pending, and likely will be carried over into the new, 110th Congress, which convenes in January 2007.

Poverty Exacerbated by Market Forces

Higher prices paid by low-income households for basic goods and services is one of the main factors that keeps them poor, according to a new report by the Brookings Institution, a Washington, D.C. research and policy organization. “Lower income families tend to pay more for the exact same consumer product than families with higher incomes,” noted Matt Fellowes, author of From Poverty, Opportunity: Putting the Market to Work for Lower Income Families, in documenting higher costs for mortgages, auto loans, financial services, appliances, and insurance in 12 metropolitan areas throughout the United States.

A chapter on groceries emphasizes that grocery stores in lower income areas are smaller and more expensive than in higher income neighborhoods. A survey of 132 products sold at over 3,000 grocery stores found that two-thirds of them were more expensive at small stores than at larger stores, causing low-income families to pay hundreds of dollars extra for food each year. “Even when lower income consumers want to avoid higher prices, they often have to commute to larger grocery stores found in higher income neighborhoods – and this may very well negate much of the savings they find at these larger stores.”

The 80-page report includes 25 specific recommendations for public and private initiatives to help level the marketplace that could have a substantial impact in reducing poverty, including financing large grocers in underserved markets. “There’s a large and for the most part overlooked opportunity here to help low-income families get ahead,” said Fellowes.

However, critics noted there are other actions that could bring about even greater change. “Certainly these measures could be an important source of income,” noted Sheldon Danzinger, a University of Michigan poverty expert commenting on the report’s findings. “But I don’t see them as competing with things like raising the minimum wage, raising child subsidies, and providing health insurance.”

The Brookings Institute report may be found at: http://www.brookings.edu/metro/pubs/20060718_PovOp.htm.

Summer Food Numbers Continue to Drop

Some 2.8 million children received meals at parks, schools, recreational programs, and other community sites through federal programs during a typical day in July 2005. Unfortunately, that represented only 18 percent of those who received a free or reduced-price meal daily during the school year from the School Lunch Program. Moreover, it was the seventh year in a row that the percentage of children fed in the summer declined.

“At a time that millions of American working families are grappling with stagnant wages and rising energy, housing, and health costs, far too little is being done to make sure their children aren’t going hungry,” said Jim Weill, president of the Food Research and Action Center (FRAC) in Washington, D.C., in releasing his organization’s report, Hunger Doesn’t Take a Vacation, on July 13, 2006. FRAC’s analysis found that meals served to children through the Summer Food Service Program and summer operation of the School Lunch Program dropped 2.7 percent from July 2004 to July 2005.

“Summer meals programs are effective weapons in the fight against obesity,” added Lynn Parker, FRAC’s director of child nutrition. “The summer meals help children get the nutrients they need. And because they draw children to programs that often also offer physical activities, like basketball or swimming, summer meals promote fitness,” she said.

Weill called for further expansion of a summer food pilot program, currently available in 19 states, that reduces paperwork for program sponsors. In the pilot states, summer feeding numbers increased by 4.3 percent. “Less red tape means more children fed,” he noted. To view the FRAC report, see: http://www.frac.org/Press_Release/07.13.06.html.

Obesity Round-Up

• Overweight teen women face early death: Women who are overweight or obese at age 18 are more likely to die when they are middle-aged than those who maintain a healthy weight in their teens, a new study has concluded. Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health reviewed medical records of more than 100,000 women, ages 24 to 44, and found that those who were overweight in their teens were more likely to die young. Additionally, the heavier the woman, the greater the risk of early death. Smoking and drinking also contributed to early death, most often from cancer or heart disease. Results were published in the July 18, 2006 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine.

“Our results suggest that childhood obesity itself has adverse health effects over and above obesity during adulthood,” said Harvard’s Frank Hu, one of the study’s authors. “Childhood obesity needs urgent attention,” he stated. For more details, go to: http://www.annals.org/cgi/content/abstract/145/2/91.

• Children still gaining weight, government data shows: The latest report from the federal government on children’s well-being found that overweight trends are continuing to rise. America’s Children in Brief: Key National Indicators of Well-Being, 2006, released this month by a federal interagency task force, found that the percentage of overweight children tripled between 1976-1980 and 2003-2004, from six to 18 percent. “Black, non-Hispanic girls were at particular high risk of being overweight (25 percent), compared with White, non-Hispanic and Mexican American girls (16 and 17 percent, respectively),” the statistics showed.

“The increasing percentage of overweight children is a public health challenge,” the report stated. Overweight numbers are one of 26 key indicators covered in the report that examines population and family characteristics, economic security, health, education, and behavior and social environment. More information may be found at: http://www.childstats.gov/amchildren06/index.asp.

· Obesity and male sexual performance: Being overweight increases the risk of erectile dysfunction in men, according to a study cited in the July 2006 issue of the Journal of Urology. Researchers reviewed the diet and health records of more than 22,000 male health professionals, age 40-75. Those who were both overweight and physically inactive were two-and-one-half times more likely to experience erectile dysfunction than those who were active and normal weight.

“The magnitude of risk is quite impressive,” commented Eric Romm, a Harvard professor of epidemiology and one of the study’s authors. “A two-and-one-half times risk if you’re overweight and don’t exercise should be a pretty strong incentive for people to start on a regular exercise program and lose weight.” To learn more, go to: http://www.jurology.com/article/PIIS0022534706005891/abstract.

• Thinning out perceptions: As American waistlines grow, so do our opinions of how people look. In 1985, 55 percent of people surveyed agreed with the statement, “People who are not overweight look a lot more attractive.” Twenty years later, only 24.1 percent said they found thin people more attractive.

Child Nutrition Reimbursement Rates Updated

Annual adjustments to national average payment rates and maximum reimbursement rates in the School Lunch, School Breakfast, and Child and Adult Care Food Programs were announced by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in the July 11, 2006 Federal Register. The rates determine the amount of reimbursement that local programs receive for subsidized meals and snacks. The new rates, effective from July 1, 2006 through June 30, 2007, reflect a 3.16 percent increase in inflation. For additional details, see the Federal Register notices at: http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/…gov/2006/pdf/06-6130.pdf.

USDA also announced, in the July 17, 2006 Federal Register, that in compliance with federal law it would provide 16.75 cents worth of commodities for every school lunch served during the 2006-2007 school year. Though this amount is 0.75 cents lower than last year’s rate, an unexpended $86 million in commodity entitlement dollars will be spent this school year, increasing the amount of food going to schools for their meal services. More information may be found at:
http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/…gov/2006/pdf/E6-11214.pdf.

Community Food Project Profile: Bowdoinham, Maine

Editor’s Note: This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Community Food Projects (CFP) program administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Over the coming months, Foodlinks America will feature profiles of some innovative projects supported by CFP grants during the past decade.

In Bowdoinham, Maine a small CFP grant had big results, inspiring a whole community to embrace and celebrate locally grown fresh food. The Friends of the Bowdoinham Public Library received a three-year, $22,000 grant – one of the smallest awards made in the ten-year history of the program – that touched the lives of most residents of the town, population 2,612. Combining efforts with the local staff of the University of Maine Cooperative Extension, the Friends of the Library in this “small, rural, bedroom community just south of Augusta,” turned school children into “Food Freaks” and captured the interest of grownups, as well.

In the first year of the project, Cooperative Extension staff adapted the state-approved Food, Land, and People (FLP) curriculum for the local system, providing ten teachers with training on the information. The Cooperative Extension also created a “Teacher Toolbox” with materials for 15 lessons that were delivered to first, third, and fourth graders in the school.

Local food producers were invited to speak at the school and as many as a dozen came annually – including a vegetable farmer, a poultry farmer, a maple syrup producer, and a beekeeper – often bringing educational displays with them. Teachers reinforced the message – after a visit from a poultry farmer, a second grade class undertook an extensive project on the life cycle of an egg, including the incubation of chicken eggs. And school children took field trips to more than half a dozen farms to learn first-hand about farm environments.

The curriculum stressed the production of local foods, expanding on the statewide campaign, “Get Real, Get Maine.” A dozen third, fourth, and fifth grade children participated in a six-week course on the history of locally-grown foods from the colonial era to the present. During the second year of the project, a children’s art show that featured “My Favorite Maine Food” drew 76 entries. And, in all three years, Maine-raised foods were used in school and community events.

Learning activities extended beyond the school to the community in general. Using grant funds, the library purchased 47 new books for its permanent collection, covering topics such as gardening, food preservation, raising animals, and nutrition. Local foods were also promoted in the town’s commercial sector; one store began carrying fruits and vegetables grown in the area, and a restaurant started using bread made at a local bakery.

From the outset of the project, gardening classes that included instruction on water conservation, composting, and landscape design were offered at the library. A children’s gardening program was initiated, utilizing grant funds to purchase fencing and other gardening supplies. The children began growing greens and garlic that they sold at the local farmer’s market.

In year two, a greenhouse kit was purchased and assembled, catalyzing an expansion of participation in the children’s gardening program. A six-week “Greenhouse Fun” course was offered to third, fourth, and fifth graders. Activities included growing winter lettuce, developing interactive displays, sowing seedlings for outdoor garden use, and growing tomato and green pepper seedlings that were distributed to seniors for container gardens at the local, low-income, elderly housing complex. The grantee sponsored an annual plant sale and promoted a “Plant-A-Row” program to grow food for donation to the local emergency food pantry.

When the project started, a local farmers’ market with four vendors operated during the growing season. The project successfully increased the number of vendors to seven in year two. Two of the vendors were certified to redeem coupons from the WIC Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program, allowing low-income women and children to gain improved access to fresh fruits and vegetables. Grant funds helped publicize the market with road signs, posters, and bulk mailings and Cooperative Extension brought educational information on nutrition and food preservation to the market. With the departure of the market master after the end of the second year, however, the market did not operate in year three.

Two annual community events – a Spring Brunch and a Fall Harvest Festival – involved local foods, children, and a healthy share of the community. In year two, the Spring Brunch event drew over 300 residents – more than 10 percent of the town’s population.

“Why would a child enthusiastically choose to eat green tomato cobbler? And what would it take to pull a busy farmer from the fields to spend time with schoolchildren?” queried the Master Gardener Newsletter of the University of Maine Cooperative Extension in its November 2004 issue. “All it takes is a group of Food Freaks – an enthusiastic group of two dozen Kindergarteners through 5th graders who wear their nickname proudly – along with a supportive community.”

“Every Wednesday the Food Freaks, dressed in aprons they themselves designed, gather in the hallway just outside the Bowdoinham School kitchen to plant, plan, cook, or serve their latest project. Those projects have included:

• A Spring Brunch where they, along with the area Alliance of Parents and Teachers, host a pancake breakfast. The menu involves local vendors and farmers who provide locally produced spelt for the pancakes, as well as ham, honey, eggs, and maple syrup.

• Planting seeds and seedlings each spring before school closes, and then using these crops in a Fall Harvest Supper that is free to as many as 220 town residents. The menu features local foods prepared by the Food Freaks. The coleslaw was comprised of cabbages they grew, they made pesto sauce, ground vegetables for the tomato sauce, and peeled and cored locally grown apples for the crisp.

• Growing 200 basil and flower seedlings in the greenhouse at the Bowdoinham Community School to give away, and also growing patio tomatoes for those in senior housing.

• Turning vegetables into an art form by making instruments out of gourds and helping to choreograph and perform a dance interpretation of vegetables with the help of a local volunteer.

• Gaining entrepreneurial skills through growing, harvesting, packaging, and selling garlic, spinach, and arugula through a local farmer.

• A celebration of reading and Dr. Seuss’ Birthday with a Spotted-Blueberry Birthday Cake for all students to enjoy.

• Designing the menu for the Winter Festival to feature seasonal and local foods. A baked potato bar, a vegetarian chili, and shrimp chowder warmed up the bellies of those who attended the event.

“Community involvement and healthy, delicious home cooking –” the article concluded, “not a bad combination.”

Small Bites*

Working for nothing: One in four U.S. jobs now pays less than a poverty-level income.

And paying more for everything: The Consumer Price Index for urban residents has increased 25 percent since the federal minimum wage was last raised.

Getting milked at the store: Inner-city grocery stores charge 43 percent more for milk than suburban supermarkets.

What you shouldn’t consume costs less: Corn subsidies have helped drop the price of soda 30 percent since 1983.

And what you should consume costs more: Meanwhile, the price of fruit has risen 50 percent.

If you can pay for it: 13 percent of U.S. households don’t have a checking account and one in 10 doesn’t have any kind of bank account.

*Statistics from the “Poor Losers” article in the July-August 2006 issue of Mother Jones magazine.

Time for a Summer Break

Foodlinks America staff will be on vacation in August and there will be no newsletter on August 18, 2006. Publication will resume on September 1.

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