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Resources by Topic: Food security and nutrition

Tribal Food Security: Opportunities Exist to Address Challenges in Federal Nutrition Programs
Explores issues related to tribal food security and whether federal nutrition programs meet tribal communities' needs. Describes American Indian/Alaska Native food insecurity rates and the food security challenges of tribal communities. Examines the extent to which select federal nutrition programs address tribal communities' needs and tribes' roles in administering these programs. Offers recommendations to Congress and the U.S. Department of Agriculture regarding the administration of the program and additional flexibilities to support tribes and states.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 07/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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Food as Medicine Survey Findings: How Anti-Hunger Organizations Partner With Health Care Providers to Address Food Insecurity
Analyzes how anti-hunger organizations are partnering with healthcare providers and facilities to promote food security and connect patients with federal food assistance programs. Utilizes 2023/2024 quantitative and qualitative survey data from 56 respondents and provides characteristics of the respondent's organization; types of healthcare facilities involved; food assistance programs to which patients are referred; screening and referral process; and demographics of people served, such as race/ethnicity, age group, special populations, and geographic location of urban, suburban, or rural. Includes a case study of the Montana Food Bank Network (MFBN) and their use of mobile food delivery to reach rural populations.
Date: 07/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Food Research & Action Center
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Experiences Participating in Federal Nutrition Assistance Programs During the Early Months of the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Investigation in Vermont
Analyzes participant experiences with federal nutrition assistance programs during the COVID-19 period of July 2020 to September 2020 in Vermont. Utilizes qualitative and quantitative feedback to analyze program participation, food insecurity, perceived stress, and fruit and vegetable intake. Discusses rurality as a factor in food insecurity during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Author(s): Emma H. Spence, Meredith T. Niles, Farryl Bertmann, Emily H. Belarmino
Citation: Nutrition Journal, 23, 74
Date: 07/2024
Type: Document
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Urban–Rural Disparities in Food Insecurity and Weight Status Among Children in the United States
Analyzes urban versus rural place of residence and its association with childhood food insecurity and weight status. Utilizes 2013-2016 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) data and provides breakdowns of urban versus rural food insecurity by child's age and weight status, according to underweight/normal weight, overweight, and obese designations.
Author(s): Jayna M. Dave, Tzuan A. Chen, Alexandra N. Castro, et al.
Citation: Nutrients, 16(13), 2132
Date: 07/2024
Type: Document
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The Impact of Food Sufficiency on the Health Status: The Case of Households in the North Central Region
Examines how availability of food is correlated with health status. Analyzes North Central Region (NCR)-Stat: Baseline Survey 2022 data and includes breakdowns according to self-reported health status, food access, and demographics, including location.
Author(s): Antara Chowdhury
Date: 07/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: North Central Regional Center for Rural Development
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Summer Food for Children: An Overview of Federal Aid
Provides an overview of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) Summer Food Service Program (SFSP). Highlights changes to the SFSP made in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023, including the permanent authorization of the nationwide Summer Electronic Benefits Transfer (Summer EBT) Program for Children, and allowing Seamless Summer Option (SSO) sponsors to provide meals for off-site consumption to children in rural areas without access to congregate meal sites.
Date: 07/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Congressional Research Service
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2024 National Rural Grocery Summit Program
Provides the agenda, speaker presentation slides, and poster presentations from the 2024 National Rural Grocery Summit. Focuses on issues such as rural grocery best practices, local food access, community partnerships, funding and sustainability, and more.
Date: 06/2024
Type: Website
Sponsoring organization: Rural Grocery Initiative
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Community-Driven Strategies to Address Persistent Poverty in Rural Areas
Webinar recording discussing persistent poverty and structural barriers to increasing wealth. Discusses the work of community development finance institutions. Highlights successful program examples including indigenous food systems in Maine, home ownership in the Mississippi Delta and colonias along the U.S.-Mexico Border, and using community engagement to impact systems and policy in Kansas. Transcript available in the video description.
Date: 06/2024
Type: Video/Multimedia
Sponsoring organization: County Health Rankings & Roadmaps
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An Examination of Emergency Food Supply and Distribution in Rural Pennsylvania
Examines the strengths and challenges faced by the Pennsylvania emergency food network in meeting the needs of residents, especially those in rural areas. Uses survey, interview, and observational data from a sample of 22 food banks, 35 partner agencies, and 65 residents served by the partner agencies.
Additional links: Executive Summary
Author(s): Kristina Brant, Justine Lindemann, Hazel Velasco Palacios, Nicholas Demerly, Jihyun Shin
Date: 06/2024
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Center for Rural Pennsylvania
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USDA Summer Food Program with Administrator for the Food and Nutrition Service, Cindy Long
Podcast episode featuring Cindy Long, Administrator for the the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS). Discusses how the USDA FNS helps parents and caregivers raising families in rural and remote areas navigate nutrition assistance programs when school is out of session in the summer. Describes Summer Food Program eligibility and how to access program benefits.
Date: 06/2024
Type: Audio
Sponsoring organization: Impact! Communications, Inc.
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