Food and Hunger Frequently Asked Questions
Question: What is the new language introduced by the USDA in 2006 to describe ranges of severity of food insecurity? How is food security being measured?
Answer: In 2006, the USDA introduced new language to describe ranges of severity of food insecurity. These changes were made in response to recommendations by an expert panel convened at the USDA’s request by the Committee on National Statistics of the National Academies. Despite new labels having been introduced, the methods used to assess households’ food security have remained unchanged. Therefore, statistics for 2005 are directly comparable with those for earlier years for the corresponding categories. Information on these new food labels and measurement methods can be found at the USDA's page titled Food Security in the United States: Hunger and Food Security.
Question: How do I apply for food stamps?
Answer:
The Food Stamp Program is available through the USDA Food & Nutrition Service. Their website provides information on eligibility, applying, using food stamps, your rights, plus more.
Question: I can't afford to pay for my child's school breakfast or lunch. Is there a program that can help me?
Answer:
Yes. The USDA Food & Nutrition Service has the following:
The National School Lunch Program provides free or reduced meals to school-aged children.
The Afterschool Snack Program helps schools serve snacks to children in afterschool activities aimed at promoting the health and well being of children and youth in our communities.
The School Breakfast Program
provides nutritious breakfasts to promote learning readiness and healthy eating behaviors.
The School Breakfast Toolkit is designed for individuals who have an interest in increasing access to the School Breakfast Program, determine the type of meal service most suited to their needs and developing a marketing plan that will capture and keep all of their customers.
The Special Milk Program offers milk to children who do not have access to other meal programs.
Question: Can my child receive food during the summer when the school lunch program is not available?
Answer: Yes. The USDA provides the Summer Food Service program, the single largest Federal resource available for local sponsors who want to combine a feeding program with a summer activity program.
Question: What is the WIC Program and how do I apply?
Answer: The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children - better known as the WIC Program - serves to safeguard the health of low-income women, infants, & children up to age five who are at nutritional risk by providing nutritious foods to supplement diets, information on healthy eating, and referrals to health care.
Question: I run a daycare center. Are there food programs available to help me?
Answer: Yes. The Child Care Food Program is a Federal program
that provides healthy meals and snacks to children receiving day care. It plays a vital role in improving the quality of day care and making it more affordable for many low-income families.
Question: Are there food assistance programs for elderly people who live at home or for those receiving adult daycare?
Answer: Yes. Meals on Wheels
Association of America (MOWAA) is the oldest and largest organization in the United States representing those who provide meal services to people in need. The program is targeted for persons 60 and older with the greatest economic or social need, with special attention given to low-income minorities. Particular consideration is also given to elders residing in rural areas. Click here to find out where the nearest Meals on Wheels program is in your area.
The Adult Day Care Food Program is a Federal program that provides
healthy meals and snacks to adults receiving day care. It plays a vital role in improving the quality of day care and making it more affordable for many low-income families.
Nonresidential, functionally impaired adults who are receiving adult day care in an eligible day care facility, or aged 60 and older may qualify.
Question: What is the Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act?
Answer: On October 1, 1996, President Bill Clinton signed the Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act to encourage the donation of food and grocery products to non-profit organizations for distribution to needy individuals. This law makes it easier for businesses to donate to food banks and food rescue programs. This act is a Federal law which protects those who donate food in good faith from civil or criminal liability should such donated food later cause harm to a recipient. The law also sets a liability floor of gross negligence or intentional misconduct for persons donating grocery products.
Question: How do I organize a Community Food Drive or start a food pantry?
Answer: One of the ways to combat hunger in your area is to have a community food drive. The goal of a food drive is to collect non-perishable foods from each of the food groups in the Food Guide Pyramid and donate this food to local food pantries or similar food distribution facilities for distribution to people in need. Organized, step-by-step planning is essential.
America's Second Harvest has information on how to find a food pantry or food rescue program near your area.
Question: Where can I find information on food donation programs?
Answer: If you are interested in donating food, The National Hunger Clearinghouse can assist you in locating an agency in your community that is in need of your donation. They are
the only centralized national database of innovative organizations working on food, nutrition and agriculture issues in the country. They focus on constructive, community-based solutions to hunger and poverty within and between the public, private and non-profit sectors, and encourage information and resource sharing.
A good set of guidelines on food donation is Food Donation-Save Money and Help Fight Hunger.
If you want to donate food to food pantries or food cupboards, you must follow strict guidelines for safety and storage purposes.
Question: How safe is the food we eat? Are there any safety guidelines or standards?
Answer: The USDA has been protecting the Nation's food supply for nearly a century. The Food Safety and Inspection Service has developed the infrastructure, including security guidelines, needed to confront new biosecurity challenges. There are over 7600 inspectors and veterinarians in meat, poultry, and egg product plants every day and at ports-of-entry to prevent, detect, and act in response to food safety emergencies. The USDA Food Security & Emergency Preparedness Program provides consumers and those in industry with publications on biosecurity and the food supply, as well as food safety.
The National Agricultural Library has a Food Safety Information Center. This center contains information on three resources:
The Foodborne Diseases Active Surveillance Network (FoodNet), consists of active surveillance for foodborne diseases and related epidemiologic studies designed to help public health officials better understand the epidemiology of foodborne diseases in the United States.
The Food Safety Training and Education Alliance, which offers resources for retail, food services, vending, institutions, and regulators on training materials, funding opportunities, rules and regulations.
The Food Safety Research Information Office, which offers resources for the food safety research community and provides users with programs, planning documents, research reports, news, upcoming conferences, and more. Includes a database of more than 1000 research abstracts accessible through the "food safety research" section.
Question: What are the current issues related to food assistance in rural communities?
Answer: Research by Mathematica Policy Research, Inc. found that food stamp participation remained high in rural communities. Other issues of concern in rural areas include sporadic pay periods that make workers ineligible to receive benefits in some months, cumbersome processes for application and re-certification, lack of knowledge about eligibility, lack of autonomy within the community, and perceived discrimination in treatment by program workers and grocery clerks.
Rural communities also experience differences in access to adequate and affordable food supplies. In most rural communities, residents rely more on small supermarkets or "mom and pop" stores, where prices are higher and food choices are more limited than those found in larger supermarkets.
As measured and described in the U.S. Food Security Measurement Project, "hunger" is involuntary hunger that results from not being able to afford enough food. People are not counted as "hungry" for statistics if they were hungry only because they were dieting to lose weight, fasting for religious reasons, or were just too busy to eat. For further information on this, please see Food Security in the United States: Measuring Household Food Security and Guide to Measuring Household Food Security, Revised 2000.
Question: What is Very Low Food Security?
Answer: According to the USDA Economic Research Service, very low food security is defined as during the year, the food intake of household members is reduced and normal eating patterns are disrupted because the household lacks money and other resources for food. Very low food security can be characterized in terms of the conditions that households in this category typically report in the annual food security survey. Further information on very low food security can be found by reading Food Security in the United States: Hunger and Food Security.
Credits
Last revised 09/10/2007
