Blogs

USDA FNS Administrator and regional FNS leadership visited New Mexico to recognize several FNS nutrition assistance programs in action and learn how FNS can support their work. New Mexico is one of the first states to offer healthy meals to all children, ensuring more kids have access to the meals they need to thrive at school and beyond.

Greeley-Evans School District 6 in northern Colorado was honored and excited to welcome Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack to Maplewood Elementary School on March 22. The Secretary and visitors were able to see just one school of more than 30 in District 6 that provide essential health and nutrition programs to more than 22,000 students every day.

Federal nutrition programs do more than give kids food to eat. They teach children about the importance of nutrition and help them develop healthy habits.

The Omaha Nation WIC program recognizes the importance of incorporating Indigenous foods and traditional cooking practices into the WIC experience to form a holistic approach to nutrition education. Recently, they have taken extra steps to spotlight foods indigenous to their community, as well as dishes and cooking methods traditionally used by the Umóⁿhoⁿ people.

October is Farm to School Month! The USDA Farm to School Program helps schools incorporate local foods into meal programs and supports local food and agriculture education through grants, research, and technical assistance. Less plate waste may be a benefit for schools implementing farm to school.

On August 14-19, a leadership team traveled to Guam and the Commonwealth of Northern Marianna Islands to meet with the territories’ leadership, superintendents and commissioners, that administer USDA food assistance programs. They discussed the challenges of transitioning back to pre-pandemic operations, how USDA could assist, and lessons learned.

Liberation Farms allows families to grow food for themselves. In 2020, support from community partners helped move farm operations onto a single property with room for everyone – and a herd of goats, too!

WIC’s food package helps to supplement a household’s food budget, increasing participants’ food resources and helping to tackle food and nutrition insecurity. Nutrition educators are a critical ingredient to helping the USDA promote and elevate nutrition security.

Mary’s Center WIC staff recently implemented electronic benefits transfer, also known as eWIC, in Washington, D.C. 

When enrolling moms into the USDA WIC, less than 30% of state agencies in Connecticut were asking for the fathers name. We don't encourage dads to step up and then we wonder why they don't show up.

The food nutrition experts at the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands enticed their school children to eat more fruit by serving fruit smoothies.

We joined Congresswoman Lisa Blunt Rochester at a school to celebrate National Nutrition Month, and learn about its innovative farm-to-school program developed with support from two USDA Farm to School grants. Program curriculum is integrated into many of the school’s 24 different tracks that students can take to build their future careers.

Supporting families is the foundation of our mission here at USDA. So, before we close 2021, I’d like to look back at one of our programs that continues to do just that.

The first week of August, farmers markets across the nation celebrate National Farmers Market Week, highlighting their role in supporting healthy communities, food systems and stimulating local economies.