Bonamici, Advocates Discuss Efforts to Improve Child Nutrition
HILLSBORO, OR [03/31/16] – Today, Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR) joined the Oregon Food Bank, Partners for a Hunger-Free Oregon, federal child nutrition program beneficiaries, and other food security advocates in a roundtable discussion about child nutrition. You can download a photo from the discussion here.
Following the meeting, Congresswoman Bonamici ate lunch with students from McKinney Elementary School. You can download photos from the lunch here and here.
“No child should have to go hungry, yet too many families in Oregon and across the country struggle with food insecurity,” said Congresswoman Bonamici. “With nearly one in five American children at risk of hunger or unable to access nutritious meals, too many students can’t reach their full potential. To help stem the cycle of poverty, we need to make investments to end childhood hunger so children are supported and able to succeed in school. It was great to hear from organizations like the Oregon Food Bank and Partners for a Hunger-Free Oregon about their work to address food insecurity. As Congress updates federal nutrition programs—like the school lunch and breakfast programs and summer food service—I’ll be advocating for commonsense measures that let more children benefit from these important programs.”
“Oregon Food Bank is extremely concerned about the high rate of hunger among America’s children,” said Jeff Kleen, Public Policy Advocate at the Oregon Food Bank. “As more studies reveal both the short-term and lifelong impacts of child hunger, we are committed to providing fresh, nutritious food to families and advocating new investments that strengthen federal child nutrition programs—especially those that address the needs of children when they’re out of school. We thank Congresswoman Bonamici for her efforts on the House Education and the Workforce Committee to reauthorize these programs in ways that will benefit more children in Oregon.”
As the school year enters its final months, advocates point out that summer can be a time of increased hunger. “Families whose kids who receive nutritious meals at school face tight food budgets in the summer,” said Matt Newell-Ching, Public Affairs Director at Partners for a Hunger-Free Oregon. “We’ve heard stories of families stretching their dollars by storing up mac 'n cheese and ramen noodles in the spring to make sure there's enough food on hand during the summer.”
Oregon has been part of a highly-successful pilot project to provide families with an extra $30 per month in the summer to help fill this gap. “It’s reduced child hunger in the summer by one-third,” said Newell-Ching. “That’s remarkable. When a pilot works this well, it deserves to be expanded nationwide, and we're grateful for Congresswoman Bonamici’s support of legislation to make that a reality.”
The roundtable participants discussed the pending reauthorization of federal child nutrition programs, including the National School Lunch Program, School Breakfast Program, Child and Adult Care Food Program, Summer Food Service Program, and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC).
In November, Bonamici introduced bipartisan legislation to expand access to nutritious meals for young children. The Early Childhood Nutrition Improvement Act makes improvements to the existing Child and Adult Care Food Program that would encourage more child care providers to participate, increasing the number of children who benefit. The bill reduces paperwork for providers and allows providers to offer a third meal to children who are in care for more than eight hours. You can read more about the legislation here.