Hunger Task Force FoodShare Assistant Elizabeth Leister helps a client access benefits online at the Robles Center. Established in the 1970’s, the Robles Center located in Milwaukee Wisconsin, was the first social services office serving Milwaukee’s predominantly Latino south side.

Here at USDA, we’re always looking for great ideas and best practices that improve access to our programs. Access to USDA’s SNAP Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (formerly the Food Stamp Program) by Hispanics/Latinos is a special concern because our data show that many low-income Latinos simply don’t apply for SNAP even though they’re eligible. Language and cultural differences, confusion and fear about immigration status of family members are very real roadblocks for many Latinos. That’s why we’re encouraged by a new and exciting social services model in Milwaukee – the Robles Center – that is reducing those barriers and empowering Latino customers. Recently I talked with Sherrie Tussler, executive director of the Hunger Task Force (HTF) in Milwaukee, to learn more. Read more »

Today I participated in event with Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel to highlight the challenge of increasing access to healthy foods. It’s a conversation that I and others at USDA have had many times before.  From small towns to big cities, people are talking about how to get more fresh, healthy food into their communities.  Everywhere I go, parents ask how and where they can get fresh fruits and vegetables for their children.  Schools ask for advice on sourcing healthier food for school meals. Shoppers ask where they can buy healthy foods in their neighborhoods.

According to the Institute of Medicine, 1 in 3 children and 2 out of 3 adults are overweight or obese. The percentage of obese adults in the United States is expected to reach 42 percent by 2030. More than 20 million Americans have diabetes, and 79 million are pre-diabetic. Our nation’s children may be the first American generation to have a shorter life expectancy than their parents’, due in large part to obesity-related diseases . In addition, the economic costs of obesity and related chronic health issues are staggering at an estimated  $147 billion per year in direct costs, and billions more if indirect costs such as lost productivity are included. Read more »

Are you an educator looking for a unique new way to motivate Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) participants to eat healthfully and cook more at home?  Or do you just love browsing, collecting, and arranging new recipes? Either way, you’re going to appreciate the latest feature added to SNAP-Ed Connection’s Recipe Finder—the ability to create your own personalized cookbook using our recipes. The process is easy, and the result is a cookbook that meets your needs and inspires healthy eating.

The Recipe Finder includes almost 600 low-cost, healthy recipes to choose from for your cookbook.  Add as many or as few as you’d like. Read more »

Some of the most passionate advocates for USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service are our partners across the country.  I realized that when I sat down yesterday with our hunger fighting partners in rural Greeley, Colorado.  The town sits in the shadow of the Rocky Mountains in Weld County, among some of the richest, most productive farmland in the west.  It’s a massive 4,000 square mile county where cattle, grain and sugar beets are king.

Yet in the midst of the beauty and bounty, I was struck by the fact that 25,000 people here are in need.  So United Way of Weld County brought together more than two dozen local agencies that all have a common goal:  to strengthen their community by reducing hunger and promoting health. Read more »

Cross posted from the White House blog:

At USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service we are committed to keeping our vital nutrition assistance programs available to those who need them most.  One way to do that is to ensure access.  Another is to ensure integrity—Americans expect us to serve those in need, and they expect us to do so with accountability for the benefits provided.

That why today, as part of the Obama administration’s ongoing Campaign to Cut Waste, we’ve announced a proposed rule that will provide States with additional tools to maintain integrity in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), also known as food stamps. The proposed rule will help States identify and prevent fraud by allowing them to request client contact when there are excessive Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) card replacement requests by SNAP households. The rule also further clarifies the definition of what constitutes trafficking. These new tools are important because excessive card replacement requests by SNAP recipients may indicate that the client does not know how to use the card properly and needs additional help or training, or that fraudulent activity may be occurring that warrants further investigation by the State. To be clear, we expect most requests for replacement cards to be legitimate ones; however, it’s important that we take a closer look at those cases in which cards are replaced at an excessive rate. Read more »

I had the distinct pleasure of visiting the birthplace of former Agriculture Secretary Henry A. Wallace during a recent trip to Iowa.  In fact, my tour of the farm near Orient in south central Iowa happened to be May 15, the day the USDA celebrated its 150^th anniversary.

Wallace was Secretary of the Agriculture from March 4, 1933 until September 4, 1940.  He served as Vice President of the United States from 1941 to 1945 under President Franklin D. Roosevelt and was also Secretary of Commerce from 1945 to 1946.

Wallace is perhaps the 20^th Century’s most well-known Ag Secretary and his accomplishments are monumental. Read more »