Summer bounty: peppers

Peppers varying from green, red, orange, yellow, and even purple are now in season! Look for these colorful veggies at your local farmers’ market! Peppers are sweet and packed with vitamin C. Add to salads, pasta dishes, and sandwiches or eat raw with veggie dip. This standout summer vegetable can be used and prepared in so many ways. Best pick: Choose smooth, firm peppers. Store: Refrigerate peppers for up to five days. Prepare: Rinse and remove the stem, core, and seeds before eating. Eat: However you like them and give this JSY recipe a try!

Red Pepper and White Bean Salad Makes six servings  Ingredients 3 cups chopped arugula or spinach leaves 1 cup chopped red bell peppers 1/3 cup sliced red onion 1 1/2 cups cooked white beans or 1 can (16 oz.) rinsed and drained 1 1/2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar (or other vinegar flavor) 1 tablespoon vegetable oil 1 garlic clove, minced Salt and pepper to taste Directions Combine arugula (or spinach), red peppers, red onion, and white beans in a large bowl. In a small bowl, mix vinegar, oil, garlic, salt and pepper. Pour dressing over salad and mix well. Serve and enjoy! Refrigerate leftovers. Nutrition Information Nutrition Information per serving: 100 calories, 2.5g fat, 0g saturated fat, 0mg cholesterol, 110mg sodium, 15g carbohydrate, 6g dietary fiber, 2g sugars, 5g protein, 30% vitamin A, 40% vitamin C, 6% Calcium, 10% Iron

SUMMER MEALS HELP FAMILIES

USDA’s Summer Meals Program provides kids with the nutrition they need when school is out, and a safe haven where they can play and learn to keep their minds and bodies active during the summer months. The availability of these meals, which are served at no cost to children 18 and under, also reduces the financial burden on caretakers when school is out. In the summer of 2015, roughly 3.8 million children and teens were served nearly 191 million meals were served to children and teens at more than 66,000 sites across the country. Rural areas are particularly difficult to serve, but states are coming up with ways to meet the challenge. Some of these could work in urban areas, too.  A school district in Southeast Kansas retrofitted a bus with tables, booths, and bookshelves to create a Meals and Reading Vehicle, MARV, that will serve lunch on weekdays during the summer in three low-income neighborhoods to .The California Summer Meal Coalition and the California Library Association have joined to provide summer meal sites at libraries. Over the last three years the number of library meals sites has grown from 20 to more than 125.

Source: USDA, 7/26/16, Summer Meals

USING GARDENS TO TEACH

Summer Institute for Educators  USING GARDENS TO TEACH Poughkeepsie Farm Project's annual summer institute is designed to help educators integrate gardens into their teaching. We cover topics in literacy, social studies, science, math, and nutrition, as well as build knowledge about sustainable agriculture, food systems, social justice, and ecological gardening practices. Join us for three days of hands-on learning! At this year's institute, we are providing three days of professional development on garden-based instruction for educators of youth in the primary grades (pre-kindergarten through grade 3). DATES August 23 - 25, 2016 LOCATION Poughkeepsie Farm Project 51 Vassar Farm Lane, Poughkeepsie, NY 12603 CONTACT Jamie Levato Phone: 845-516-1100 x 4 Email: jamie@farmproject.org FEE $200 (City of Poughkeepsie educators receive a discount of $100.)

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HUNGER TOUCHES EVERY COUNTY IN US

USDA reports that more than 48 million people in America—including 15 million children—are food-insecure. On average, the food-insecurity rate among the nation’s 3,142 counties is 14.7% (and even higher for children).  Food insecurity ranged from a high of 38% in Jefferson County, Mississippi to a low of 4% in Loudoun County, Virginia where median household income at nearly $124,000 per year. According to USDA 353 counties struggle with “persistent poverty,” where at least 20% of the population has been living in poverty for 30 years.  There is a significant overlap between these counties and those that fall into the top 10% percent for food insecurity nationwide: of the latter, nearly two-thirds suffer from persistent-poverty. Moreover, hunger doesn’t necessarily stop once someone is above the SNAP income eligibility threshold--185% of the poverty level. In fact, more than 25% of all food-insecure people live in such households. There are now 115 counties where the majority of food-insecure individuals are likely ineligible for most federal nutrition assistance programs based on their household income.

Source: Talk Poverty, 8/3/16, Widespread Hunger

New ag specialists in Northern New York

Cornell Cooperative Extension has made 7 unique specialists available to northern New York farmers over the past year. Their expertise covers everything from business planning to technical crop and livestock knowledge.

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BRING A LEGISLATOR TO THE TABLE

State legislators are in a unique position to tackle hunger and increase access to healthy food. Legislators simultaneously wear the hats of policymaker and community leader. They can direct and provide incentives for state agencies to implement new programs, catalyze coordination among agencies, give start-up or expansion funding to promising initiatives, and establish an award to recognize an organization fighting hunger in their communities.  As community leaders, they can bring together the public, nonprofit, corporate, and foundation sectors to inspire meaningful change and imagine innovative solutions for low-income communities. A new publication from the National Conference of State Legislatures offers nine examples of innovative programs that involve partnerships among multiple organizations and state-level support to support SNAP, food distribution, child nutrition, and access to healthy food.

Source: NCSL, 8/16, Legislative Outreach

NEW FINDINGS ON FOOD INSECURITY AND CHILDREN

Much recent research links food insecurity with negative outcomes for children’s health, education, and other areas. Other research shows that programs like SNAP can have large and long-lasting benefits, especially when the benefits are received by mothers during pregnancy and by children at a young age. A recent study that examines the impact of the rollout of the original Food Stamp Program in the late 1960s shows that receiving  Food Stamps during pregnancy reduced the incidence of low birth weight by between five and 12%. The same researchers also found that among adults who grew up in disadvantaged households, access to Food Stamps in utero and early childhood led to: a 16 percentage-point decline in the likelihood of being obese as an adult and significant reductions in metabolic syndrome (a cluster of conditions associated with heart disease and diabetes); an 18 percentage-point increase in the likelihood of completing high school; and significant improvements in overall health and economic self-sufficiency among women. This and other research findings on food insecurity are highlighted in recent newsletter from the Food Research and Action Council.

Source: Food Research & Action Council, 8/3/16, Food Insecurity Research