Fight Hunger 5K this weekend!

GardenShare's first Fight Hunger 5K is this weekend and we hope you are planning to join us!
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Whether you walk, run, push the kids in a stroller, or pull them in a wagon, this will be a great day for all to support GardenShare's mission of solving hunger in St. Lawrence County.

Saturday, October 10, 2015
Potsdam Farmers Market, Ives Park, Main Street
Registration starts at 8:30
Runners leave at 9:30, with walkers to follow

This is a fun run and walkathon - there are no minimums to take part, we just ask that you make a donation and ask others to donate to support you.  Those who raise $50 or more will get a Fight Hunger 5K t-shirt.

Go here for more details and registration information.

Thank you to our sponsors who are helping to make this event a success:

Presenting sponsor

T-shirt sponsor

Partnership sponsor:

Conboy, McKay, Bachman, & Kendall, LLP

Friend sponsors:

The Clarkson Inn

TOO MUCH KETCHUP, TOO FEW BRUSSEL SPROUTS

Nearly half of the vegetables and legumes available in the U.S. in 2013 were either tomatoes or potatoes, according to USDA. Lettuce came in third. But the vegetables that are available don't really match what we're supposed to be eating—federal dietary guidelines prescribe a varied mix that includes dark leafy greens, orange and yellow vegetables, and beans—along with all those potatoes and tomatoes. Although the USDA report focuses on the limited variety of vegetables available to American shoppers, other agency data suggest that the country simply doesn't offer enough vegetables, period. A 2010 study estimated that the U.S. vegetable supply would need to increase by 70% — almost entirely in dark leafy greens, orange vegetables and legumes — in order for Americans to meet recommended daily allowances.

Source: NPR, 9/19/15, Vegetables

CACFP MATTERS

The federally funded Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) provides over 1 million meals a year for children in Head Start programs, family day care, child care centers, homeless shelters, and afterschool programs. Children who received CACFP meals were 28% less likely to be in fair or poor health, 26% less likely to be hospitalized, and significantly more likely to have a healthy weight and height for their age than children whose meals were supplied from home. A recent study among found that CACFP participation increased consumption of milk and vegetables, and reduced the prevalence of overweight and underweight among low-income preschoolers. CACFP is up for reauthorization this year as part of the Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act. Several changes are being proposed to improver the program including Increasing reimbursement rates, allowing three meals a day, and reducing area eligibility tests in order to streamline access to the program.

Source: Children’s Health Watch, 9/18/15, CACFP

THE PROBLEM IS POVERTY, NOT FOOD INSECURITY

The detailed tabulations in USDA’s annual hunger report suggest that lack of food in not the main cause of food insecurity, poverty is. Food insecurity is actually higher for low-income households that received SNAP benefits or emergency food from food pantries. The rate of food insecurity was 54% for low-income households that received SNAP benefits and only 25% for low-income households that did not receive SNAP benefits. Similarly, the rate of food insecurity was 69% for low-income households that received emergency food from food pantries and only 27% for low-income households that did not. For a low-income family—especially one juggling responsibilities for children, or health care problems, or multiple jobs – almost no amount of SNAP benefits at the start of the month would be enough to prevent episodes of insecurity by the end.

Source: Politico, 9/15, Food Insecurity or Poverty

Mark food day with the local food challenge

Food Day is coming...

Take a deeper dive into your food sources by doing the 10-Day Local Food Challenge in October. For 10 days, eat food grown within 100 miles of your home. Click here to find out how you can do the Challenge.

Updates from Washington

Federal Budget: Wednesday, September 30, Congress voted on a short-term spending bill (CR) to keep the government funded through December 11, 2015. All federal nutrition programs will continue to operate as usual through December 11, 2015. There should be no interruption in SNAP benefits and all commodity (USDA), child nutrition, and seniors programs will continue operating under current law. Additionally, the CR included a provision that should allow SNAP benefits to be funded through the entire month of January. This should hopefully remove the prospect of delayed benefits should a timely agreement to fund the government beyond December 11, 2015, not be reached and provide a cushion to ensure SNAP benefits can continue to be paid if a shutdown occurs at that point.


Child Nutrition Reauthorization: Unfortunately, Congress was not able to reauthorize the Child Nutrition bill before the deadline of September 30. The programs will continue to operate under current law, however, it is critical that Congress completes the reauthorization bill as soon as possible.

FOOD INSECURITY DECLINES SLIGHTLY

More than 48.1 million Americans lived in households that were struggling against hunger in 2014, according to new data from USDA. The 2014 numbers were a slight decline (of fewer than a million people) from 2013, with the rate declining from 15.8 to 15.4%. Other findings from the USDA report include:

•      The number of individuals in households that faced the deepest struggles with hunger – “very low food security” – was 5.5% in 2014.

•      15.3 million children lived in food insecure households in 2014, compared to 15.8 million in 2013.

•      Households in more rural areas are seeing considerably deeper struggles with hunger compared to those inside metropolitan areas, with higher rates of food insecurity (17.1% compared to 13.5%), higher rates of food insecurity in households with children (23.6% compared to 18.4%), and higher rates of very low food security (7.3% compared to 5.3%).

•      Food insecurity rates for Black and Hispanic households were substantially above the national average, with 26.1% of Black households and 22.4% of Hispanic households reporting being food insecure in 2014.

Source: Food Research Action Council, 9/9/15, Food Insecurity 2014; Poverty & Policy, 9/24/15, Food Insecurity II