Aug 23, 2022
In early August, Deputy Below Secretary Stacy Dean and I travelled to San Francisco for conferences and occasions associated to the work the USDA Meals and Diet Service does to assist native communities. On August 3, we spent the day visiting applications across the Bay Space that have an effect on addressing starvation.
Our first cease was Davis Park in San Pablo, which is one website the place the West Costa Contra Unified College District (WCCUSD) gives summer season meals. There we noticed youngsters of all ages taking part in, however extra importantly, having fun with a recent, regionally sourced, and scratch-cooked meal. WCCUSD feeds 250 youngsters a day at this one location and after seeing the meals they served, we might see why. It appeared, and smelled, scrumptious!
On the summer season meal website, we additionally noticed the significance of partnerships and collaboration to make a distinction in addressing childhood starvation. The WCCUSD companions with town, the county, the state, the federal authorities, native farmers, non-profits, dad and mom, and volunteers to supply wholesome and scrumptious meals, and enhance diet consciousness. On this present day on the summer season meals website, for example, an area farmer was readily available providing samples of stone fruit for the youngsters to style check. A neighborhood non-profit, Aware Kitchen, was additionally there with a wide range of raspberries to pattern and give-away packages of different recent fruit for the households to take house to take pleasure in later. It was an ideal instance of how all these organizations working along with a typical objective could make a huge impact in native communities.
We have been additionally delighted to see the WCCUSD’s cell kitchen, Recent Wheels, which was bought with USDA grant funding. The intense yellow meals truck adorned with colourful work of vegetables and fruit permits the district to supply summer season meals in low-income distant areas the place households might not in any other case have entry.
Subsequent, we met with the management on the Alameda County Neighborhood Meals Financial institution and heard in regards to the unimaginable work they’re doing to feed individuals of their neighborhood. We have been additionally capable of see their warehouse enlargement, which can strengthen their means to serve their neighborhood.
We wrapped up the day on the Coronary heart of the Metropolis Farmers Market in San Francisco. This farmers market redeems extra diet help advantages than every other within the nation. That’s over $3 million a yr in Supplemental Diet Help Program (SNAP) advantages and grant-funded incentives to assist low-income households enhance their buying energy of vegetables and fruit from native farmers.
Partaking with the companions that administer FNS applications and make them successful, in addition to youngsters and households that take part in these applications, is so rewarding. It’s an incredible reminder of why we do what we do right here at FNS: to make sure that everybody can entry secure, wholesome, and nutritious meals.
Meals and Diet
