This data collection fulfills states' reporting requirements and describes trends in program participation during the COVID-19 pandemic from July 2021 through September 2022. It is part of an ongoing study series examining child nutrition program operations, repurposed to collect waiver usage and trends in program participation and operations during the pandemic.
Beginning in summer 2023, sponsors in certain eligible rural areas could provide meals and snacks for kids to be picked up or delivered at no cost with SUN Meals To-Go. This flexible, cost-effective approach helped reach more children. In a recent survey, many sponsors (86%) said they plan to continue offering SUN Meals To-Go in future summers.
This report, the latest in a series of annual reports on WIC eligibility, presents 2022 national and state estimates of the number of people eligible for WIC benefits and the percents of the eligible population and the US population covered by the program, including estimates by participant category.
The program participation dashboard is an interactive tool that provides FNS nutrition program data, including participation and meals served, at the state, territory, and national levels.
This report, the seventh in the WIC Infant and Toddler Feeding Practices Study 2 (WIC ITFPS-2)/ “Feeding My Baby” Study focuses on children's dietary intake patterns, eating behaviors, and weight status during the child's 6th year after WIC eligibility has ended. The report also explores whether patterns of WIC participation in early childhood are associated with dietary behaviors and nutrient intakes after WIC eligibility ends.
This is the first study to provide a comprehensive account of the WIC nutrition assessment and tailoring process. The nutrition and breastfeeding assessment process is critical to the delivery of individualized nutrition services and to meeting WIC’s mission. Study findings will inform FNS and WIC state and local agencies about how to enhance service delivery and improve retention of WIC participants.
This data collection fulfills states’ reporting requirements and describes trends in program participation during the COVID-19 pandemic from July 2020 through Dec. 2021. It is part of an ongoing study series examining CN program operations, repurposed to collect waiver reports from all states. A previous report in the series detailed waiver usage and trends in program participation and operations from March through Sept. 2020.
WIC has been serving families for more than 50 years. To ensure that WIC continues to get results, the program must modernize.
The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 authorized Summer Electronic Benefits Transfer for Children (Summer EBT) as a permanent federal food assistance entitlement program beginning in summer 2024. Summer EBT has been tested through evaluations of demonstration projects since 2011. With pending implementation of this new program, this is an appropriate time to reflect on what USDA, FNS research has learned through more than a decade of study.
Since 1988, FNS has produced biennial reports on WIC participant and program characteristics for program monitoring and managing WIC information needs. The 2022 report summarizes demographic, income, and health-related characteristics of participants with active certifications in April 2022.
