Access To Grocery Stores Affects Food Shopping & Spending

Researchers believe that poor access to stores that sell a wide range of healthy and affordable foods results in poorer diet and diet-related health problems. Six percent (6%) of American households lack of access to supermarkets, which may mean that they rely more heavily on convenience stores or fast-food restaurants. A new USDA survey of how the local food environment influences where households get food and how much of their food budget is spent at various types of retailers reveals:

●    77% low-access households shopped at supermarket, superstore, large grocery store, or warehouse store compared to 87% percent for households with sufficient access.
●    Low-access households spend almost the same percentage of their weekly food expenditures at large stores as households with sufficient access.
●    Low-access households are less likely to buy food at a restaurant than households with sufficient access (69.5% compared with 85.8%) and spend less than half as much per person as households with sufficient access ($9.90 compared to $19.56).

Source: USDA, 10/17, Grocery Store Access

DC’s Largest Food Bank Cuts Junk Food By 84%

A year ago, Washington D.C.’s Capital Area Food Bank decided to turn away junk food. From soda to chips, the CAFB has reduced the junk food it supplies to its 444 nonprofit partners, including soup kitchens and food pantries, by 84%.  Nearly half of the people receiving CAFB meals have high blood pressure, nearly a quarter have diabetes, or they live with someone who suffers from those illnesses. 

These customers’ doctors were telling them to reduce the salt and sugar in their diet and increase fiber. CAFB has not only cut back on sugary snacks and drinks, but it’s also boosted the amount of protein if offers, including 544,000 more pounds of beans and other vegetarian protein than in fiscal year 2015 — an increase of 57%. To improve its inventory, CAFB had to circle back with the 12 grocery store retailers that donate the bulk of the bank’s food to change from the high-sugar, low-nutrition items they historically provided. To date, the CAFB has managed to make improvements and retain relationships with all of its major food donors.

Source: Fern’s AG Insider, 9/18/17, Cutting Junk Food

Healthy Food Donation

Over 50 pounds of chayote (aka cho-cho) was donated to Foodshare and in less than 15 minutes it was on its way to the food pantry at Charity SDA Church in East Hartford.  Beulah Gayle picked up the two cases of fresh fruit as part of her weekly pickup at Foodshare.

Chayote is rich in amino acids, a good source of vitamin C and folate, and is low fat.  It can be eaten raw or cooked.  It can be added to soups and salads or stretching a meat dish.  In short, it’s a versatile healthy food that not enough people know about.

Next time you are looking for healthy foods to eat and donate – think Chayote. 

 Foodshare encourages healthy food donations such as Chayote.

Beluah Gaye (left) to distribute fresh chayote at the Charity SDA Church Food Pantry in East Hartford; and Jim Palma (right) donated the fresh chayote to Foodshare.

Students Earn Their Passports to Nutrition

Recently, Stop & Shop of East Hartford ,volunteered at Robert J. O'Brien STEM Academy. Associates introduced students to nutrition facts through their Passport to Nutrition program. The program focuses on: what nutrients are, MyPlate and the 5 food groups, the importance of exercise and staying hydrated, the role of the senses in tasting food, how to read food labels, and portion control.

The children sampled low sodium cheese, whole wheat bread, apple slices, and organic cereal and had the opportunity to pet a lobster. They also received an activity book, some fruit, a juice box and a frisbee to take home.

Thank you Stop & Shop for sharing healthy eating habits and physical activity with the next generation!

Interested in joining a Hunger Action Team? View our website for more information. 

Great American Milk Drive Returns!

Across Connecticut, 438,000 of our neighbors struggle to afford enough food, including basic staples like milk.

To help more of our food insecure neighbors access the essential nutrients they need, Price Chopper has partnered with Feeding America once again to host the Great American Milk Drive.

From June 1 to June 30 customers will have the opportunity to make a monetary gift while shopping at their local Price Chopper store.

All money collected will be used to purchase half-gallons of milk, which will be used to help local food banks like  Foodshare put milk on the table for local families. 

Celebrity Chef Seeks to End Hunger in USA

Rachel Martin of NPR's Morning Edition recently spoke with celebrity chef and hunger advocate,Tom Colicchio to discuss hunger related issues described below:

"An estimated 13.1 million kids live in homes with insufficient food, according to the most recent figures from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. And the number of college students struggling with hunger has prompted more campuses to open food pantries.

Seniors and people with disabilities also suffer from hunger, and federal money for programs like Meals on Wheels may face cuts under President Trump's proposed budget."

Source: NPR, 5/1/17, Read More >

It’s Cool to Eat Breakfast in Wethersfield Schools

Wethersfield High School students recently hosted their first school breakfast event at Charles Wright Elementary School. Carissa, our Communications VISTA, had the pleasure of attending:

Wethersfield HAT members from left to right include Christina Morra-Tiu, Principal Glenn Horter, Monique Gardon, Joanna Morillo, Beatrice Maslowski, and Chef Jamie Davies

I walked into Charles Wright Elementary with one of Foodshare’s Community Network Builders, Beatrice Maslowski, who facilitates the Wethersfield Hunger Action Team. As a teacher guided us down to the cafeteria, Bea explained that the children made clay bowls for an Empty Bowls project. Their creations lined the halls, showcased on window sills and in display cases.

Upon entering the cafeteria, Principal Glenn Horter welcomed us warmly. Chef Jamie Davies from Chartwells and his team were already preparing a delicious feast of fresh fruit, milk, egg sandwiches, cereal, French toast, and hash browns. The walls mimicked the day’s theme of healthy meals, including a bulletin board showcasing a superhero. The children began to file in with their brightly colored backpacks in tow. Mrs. Doris Duggins, Monique Gardon, and the rest of their sociology class began to set up their materials after a walk from Wethersfield High School.

Mrs. Duggins wanted to help food insecure students in the area by having her students lead presentations and activities to encourage school breakfast. Monique took this initiative to heart, coming up with a strategy, discussing her ideas with the Wethersfield Hunger Action Team, and encouraging her classmates to join her.

Principal Horter enthusiastically introduced the guests to the children, and Monique explained the agenda: one grade would play games while the other would eat breakfast, and then they would switch rooms in about 25 minutes. The sociology students led activities intended to get the fifth and sixth graders thinking about healthy choices, the importance of breakfast, and nutrition. While the children ate, they watched a skit written by Daniel Lopez of the Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts. Giggles filled the room as “Banana Boy” jumped out to inform “Jimmy” not to be afraid to try new foods and not to skip breakfast. To see so many children enjoying themselves and get a nutritious meal was inspiring.

I recently learned that the experience of volunteering is just as important to the individuals donating their time as it is to the cause. I listened to the presenters talk about their favorite parts of the morning while eating their own breakfasts. Watching Mrs. Duggins interact with her students was heartwarming. The class then packed up and headed back to school, and I drove back to Foodshare with a light heart and hope for the continued success of this program.

You can view photos and videos from that wonderful morning. Learn more about Foodshare Hunger Action Teams, and how you can get involved!

Wholesome Wave Expands Network For Better Access to Produce

"Wholesome Wave, the nonprofit behind the country’s largest prescription program for fruits and vegetables, just awarded $210,000 in grants for the sort of collaboration that doesn’t happen often in the philanthropy world: They’re financing nine partners, from farmers markets to community nonprofits and grocers to take their basic business model and the underlying lessons and technology that’s made it a success, and hopefully expand it.

Each grant recipient is a member of Wholesome Wave’s National Nutritional Incentive Network, which is backed by a several million dollar grant from the USDA’s Food Insecurity Nutrition Incentive Program. The goal is to expand the concept more widely with partners who might already know how to best serve their communities, while at the same time providing coaching and a unified way to track spending, consumption, and consumer satisfaction and health benefits to show the program itself is working."

Source: Fast Company, 03/09/17, Learn More >

CBRE joins forces with Foodshare

For a second year in row, CBRE/New England, a renowned full-service commercial real estate services company, took time from managing properties to assist with distributing healthy food items for our hungry neighbors.

The employees themselves expressed a strong passion for supporting their community and Foodshare's mission. Hilary, a member of the company's Property Management team said, "It is important to contribute to all aspects of a community and Foodshare is an integral part of that fabric."

Thanks to all for your hard work, successfully sorting through 8,100 lbs. of food...thank you CBRE for supporting our hungry neighbors!




 

Plate Of The Union

The Environmental Working Group and Food Policy Action Education Fund are launching the Plate of the Union campaign, which aims to encourage consumers to become activists for policies that make food safer, make healthy food more accessible, and make food production better for our environment.

The campaign will focus on four main issues:

1. Stopping taxpayer subsidies going to Big Ag polluters; 
2. Protecting and improving anti-hunger programs like SNAP;
3. Increasing federal investments in organic agriculture; and
4. Expanding federal programs to revitalize land and reduce food waste.

The new initiative will deploy grassroots and online tools and tactics to raise awareness about farm and food policies, and show why consumers must demand their right to healthy food as Congress begins crafting a new Farm Bill.

Source: InsuranceNewsNet, 2/22/17, Plate of the Union

A Study Break Benefits the Community

The Huskies were here...we mean the students of course!

A group of passionate students from UConn's School of Medicine and Dental Medicine, took a break from the books to sort through donated food to help provide healthy meals for our hungry neighbors.

The students were very passionate about taking time to be of service to others. One student shared, "Volunteering is a way to pay forward in life, it is also a way for us to give back to the community that we are apart of."

The Kitchen Is Now Open…

Foodshare's Communications Coordinator, Dyani, recently attended a Frog Hollow HAT meeting to have a peek at their new kitchen. Here is what she had to share from her experience:

As I walk past a large pile of snow, I look to my left, then my right. In front of me I see a sign that reads ‘HAT Meeting,’ leading me through a wooden door belonging to the Hartford-based, Hands On Hartford. This is my first time attending Foodshare’s Frog Hollow Hunger Action Team (HAT) meeting.

The main focus of the meeting was to present the newly furnished kitchen built in affiliation with the Kitchen to Pantry concept. This project was presented by Hands On Hartford’s Communications Manager, Kate Shafer, during the previous meeting back in December. This concept was born from an abundance of perfectly good, fresh produce that was at risk of going to waste in the community, and an overwhelming need for clients to have access to healthier food. Thanks to support from a Foodshare Partnership Grant, staff members at Hands on Hartford are now able to connect local residents in the Frog Hollow community with more and better options for fresh foods.

Ally Klindienst, Food Access Outreach AmeriCorps VISTA for Hands On Hartford, served as our tour guide for the evening. She walked myself and other attendees through the kitchen and pantry facility, explaining the day to day operation of both, which included preparing produce for distribution through the pantry. The facility runs on a biweekly schedule, with staff and volunteers sharing the workload. Volunteers visit Foodshare weekly to pick up fresh produce. Staff offer feedback on the produce and assist with distributing it to visitors.

Viewing the volume and variety of food available through the pantry, two words came to mind: healthy and accessible. It is clear that this is how the staff at Hands On Hartford want their clients to live and feel.

The tour ended with a sit-down discussion in the conference room, with each team member offering a recap of recent accomplishments.

Interested in Joining a Hunger Action Team? Contact Jim Palma or learn more online.

Sam's Club Goes One Step Further to Fight Hunger

In addition to their current contribution of bakery,  meat and frozen food items, one of our most dedicated retail donors—Sam's Club—will now provide produce for our hungry neighbors.

Enthusiasm from staff at both the Newington and Manchester locations, has already resulted in more than 17,000 meals being shared with those in need. We look forward to seeing that number skyrocket even more.

Thank you to Sam's Club for recognizing the need in our community and stepping up to be the difference!

Big Y Fed Our Hungry Neighbors in a Big Way

Last week, Foodshare received a generous load of  non-perishable items  from Big Y. These items were collected through Big Y's 7th Annual Care to Share Sack Hunger Campaign. The campaign itself consisted of customers purchasing $10 pre-filled bags of healthy food items or a card at any Big Y location, to help provide much needed protein and staple items. The donations were then distributed to numerous  local food banks, homebound elderly assistance programs, day care centers, soup kitchens along with many other community-based organizations.

Thanks to their contribution, Foodshare was able to provide over 26,000 meals to our hungry neighbors!


Thank you Big Y for all of your efforts in fighting to end hunger!

View Photos Here ->

Programs Help CT Families Build Better Eating Habits

Connecticut doctors and health care workers are helping low-income families make healthier food choices and coaching busy parents on fast, but healthy ways to feed their children. Understanding the reality of life for low-income families is key to helping their kids get to a healthy weight, said Melissa Santos, a pediatric psychologist and assistant professor at UConn’s School of Medicine. Helping these families eat healthier is a process, according to Santos, because their lives are already overwhelming.

At Connecticut Children’s Medical Center, Patricia Esposito, clinical nutrition manager, shows working parents how to pull together easy meals for busy days. She steers them to items like pre-washed salad greens and pre-cooked chicken—and stresses that though these may be among the pricier items in the grocery store, they end up being cheaper than fast food. In New Britain, PhotoVoice, a community grassroots project, is teaching young teens about healthy lifestyles, including making good food choices and incorporating exercise daily. For one project, teens took streetscape photos in their neighborhoods full of fast food restaurants, convenience stores, and torn-up sidewalks.

Source: New Haven Register, 1/27/17, Healthier Eating

Amazon Connects With SNAP

"The U.S. Department of Agriculture has announced Amazon will take part in the agency's latest program on food stamps: the SNAP Online Purchasing Pilot. 

Food stamp recipients will soon be able to purchase groceries online from Amazon. These digital food stamps will aid more than 43 million low-income Americans under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) of the government."

Source: Tech Times, 1/31/17, Read More...

Boosting SNAP Benefits Could Improve Eating Habits

In response to the recent controversy over whether SNAP funds should be used to buy sugary drinks, one commentator suggests that raising SNAP benefits would promote healthier eating. Low-income people, he argues, particularly people of color and those living in rural areas, lack access to healthy food options.

Research on food availability finds that low-income communities tended to have fewer supermarkets and fewer “healthy, high quality foods in nearby stores.”

Even when a lack of transportation options isn’t limiting their ability to locate better food sources, low-income people may struggle to afford healthier items. An analysis of the relationship between SNAP benefits and both food spending and food-related activities shows that a $30 boost to SNAP benefits could increase vegetable consumption by about 1.5%, increase the time spent on food shopping and preparation by 2.5 and 3.5%, respectively, and decrease fast food consumption by about 2.5%.

Source: Washington Post, 1/26/17, Boost SNAP, Eat Better

Panera Leads in Clean-Food Revolution

"Panera Bread has finally completed its mission to make its menu 100% 'clean,' cutting all 96 additives and ingredients the company identified on its "No No List" two years ago.

Panera first announced its plan to cut all artificial ingredients in May 2015. With the completion of its promise, Panera became the first national chain to complete such a commitment."

Ron Shaich, CEO states the following on the company's achievement:

"What the leadership at Panera spends its time working on, is figuring out where is the world going to be for our guests in the next two to five years, and making sure Panera is there when it gets there."

Source: CT Post, 1/13/17, Read More...

SNAP Diet Needs An Update

In a recent report diet experts argue, that USDA needs to align SNAP with the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. The guidelines  call for 75% of meals to focus on plant-based foods, and nutrition . 

A paper in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine recounts SNAP’s history, reviews its current state, and puts forth ideas to improve the program. “Since [SNAP] was first conceived, the food supply has grown much more complicated -- there are now many new ways to eat badly. There are many barriers to healthy food choices other than cost. And when food costs less, there is the risk that an excess will be eaten….” the report’s authors contend. 

They want USDA to fund and support state pilot programs that will help identify and provide solutions for a larger-scale federal alignment. In addition to improving the health of program participants, the recommendations could also lead to substantial financial savings, they assert.

Source: MedPage Today, 1/18/17, Read More...

ER Advice Boosts Healthy Eating for SNAP Particpants

Low-income families were more likely to use their SNAP benefits on nutritious food after learning that their dollars can be doubled for more fruits and vegetables, according to another article in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

 A University of Michigan-led team conducted five-minute conversations in the waiting room of a health clinic. They spoke about  a program called Double Up Food Bucks , the program matches food assistance dollars spent on fruits and vegetables. This brief interaction prompted the rise of fruit and vegetable consumption and led to an almost four-fold increase in program use among families.

 Double Up, run by national nonprofit Fair Food Network, is now available at more than 200 farmers markets, grocery stores, and other retail outlets across Michigan. Up to $20 in SNAP funds spent per market visit are matched with free Double Up Food Bucks that can be used to purchase fresh, locally grown fruits and vegetables. Fruit and vegetable consumption increased among study participants by almost two-thirds of a serving per day - with the greatest increases among those who used Double Up the most.

Health Incentive programs such as Double Up, exist in approximately forty states throughout the U.S.

 Source: News-Medical.net, 1/19/17, ER Advice Works