What Happened?
The city of Hackensack, New Jersey, was awarded a $132,815 grant from the state Department of Agriculture to support its Summer Food Service Program. The funding is sourced through a federal program offered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The Goal
The USDA is helping cities such as Hackensack maintain existing programs or launch new ones that target low-income communities where households may not have access to consistent, proper nutrition. The city of Hackensack established its Summer Food Service Program in 2011 and is now accepting the federal grant from the USDA as a refund of the local money already invested in the initiative.
The food purchased is distributed to the community in the summer months through camps, day care and summer school. The federal money is intended for nutritious lunches, and Hackensack aims to offer lunch and one snack to eligible children. The city is responsible for keeping track of all food items and their condition within the program, ensuring proper procedures are followed to ensure the products are safe for consumption. A city will receive more grant money from the USDA if the food being used adheres to the rules and is taken care of.
State Level Program
In New Jersey, the state’s Department of Agriculture launched the Summer Food Service Program to ensure low-income students continue to have access to nutritious foods even after school lets out. Participating cities provide free meals and snacks to local children in need, while working with local vendors to supply the food. The program itself is managed by locally approved sponsors such as school districts, government agencies and nonprofit organizations. The USDA reviews applications for grants to support existing programs and refunds what has been spent through state agencies.
Similarly, the Illinois State Board of Education manages a Summer Food Service Program that receives funding from the USDA. Taking it one step further, the school board also offers the Seamless Summer Option through the National School Lunch or School Breakfast Program. This program requires less administrative duties and paperwork to be completed by the local organization while still providing nutritious meals during the summer months.
Getting Started
According to the USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service, when considering a summer food program, local government agencies and municipal leaders should outline a plan for both short and long-term maintenance of the initiative. Successful summer food programs include:
- Planned activities that feature the distribution of nutritious meals to the community
- Meal services in public locations that ensure easy access for residents with a variety of schedules
- Sponsor retention strategies that reduce the administrative burden of having to recruit new sponsors and vendors each ear
- Superior data tracking to guarantee state and federal funding is awarded and the program can be sustained in the long term
The USDA also recommends sponsor agencies spend time raising awareness of the programs in the community to make sure all residents in need understand the nutritious options available to their families.
Food On The Brain
Gov1 has reported on several initiatives to improve the quality and accessibility of healthy food in the community through federal funding and increased support for urban farming.