This Report to Congress from USDA responds to a requirement established by the 2018 Farm Bill to address requirements to coordinate efforts within USDA to reduce barriers to food access. USDA has identified FNA as the Food Access Liaison to coordinate efforts and annually respond to this request. The report describes activities that occurred from October 2020 through September 2023 to reduce barriers to food access given the last such annual report submitted in March 2021 covered fiscal year 2020
The 2023 Farm to School Census collected information on farm to school participation by school food authorities (SFAs) in school year 2022–23. Every SFA participating in the National School Lunch Program in the 50 states, Washington, DC, and five territories received an online survey asking about the farm to school activities they participated in, details of their participation, and their perspectives on farm to school.
FNA recently released a new report on SNAP household characteristics for fiscal year (FY) 2022.
This rulemaking finalizes long-term school nutrition requirements based on the goals of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020-2025, robust stakeholder input, and lessons learned from prior rulemakings.
USDA Foods are foods purchased from American farmers, dairies, ranchers, and fisheries to support federal nutrition assistance programs and American agriculture.
Healthy Eating Index scores range from 0 to 100 and are a measure of diet quality used to assess how well a set of foods aligns with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. A higher score is ideal. The FDPIR Food Package scores an 84. This is higher than the average U.S. diet, which scores a 59.