Food Dignity® COVID-19 Era: Challenge the Stigma, Change the Culture May 3, 2021 Bringing to life the dairy community’s shared vision of a healthy, happy, sustainable world, with science as our foundation environmental stewardship goals for air, land The New York Times Magazine September 6, 2020. Photos: Brenda Ann Kenneally Today’s Speakers
Clancy Harrison, MS, RDN, FAND Theresa McCormick Lisa McCann, RDN Founder Director of Programs & Healthcare Wellness Manager Food Dignity Project Partnerships Midwest Dairy [email protected] Second Harvest Heartland [email protected] @ClancyCHarrison [email protected] @LisaMcCannRD @Schneitr The Dairy Community’s Commitment to Fighting Hunger Addressing food and nutrition security with dynamic partnerships Local Efforts with Food Banks & Schools Across the United States COVID-19 has impacted every facet of the food system
Closure of schools across the Restaurant service was Loss of jobs has challenged U.S. reduced channel that ~30 limited, so Americans are millions of additional Americans million food-insecure children eating a lot more at home with food insecurity – putting rely on for nutritious meals pressure on food banks to serve every day many more clients/families Work with Minnesota Food Banks to Nourish Communities
$500,000 Food Bank donation across Midwest Dairy • 5 Minnesota food banks • 777,433 pounds of dairy products to food banks in MN
Undeniably Dairy Funding
• 27 Refrigeration coolers to MN Food Pantries • Reach of 56,000 People
10 Emergency Relief for Minnesota Schools Donation of insulated cooler bags and barrel coolers to keep milk cold
Apple Valley/Eagan/Rosemount School District Supporting 22 Minnesota School Districts Ashby Public Schools Atkinson Elementary School • 390 soft-sided milk crate cooler bags donated Battle Lake School Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa School District Bloomington Public Schools • 19 milk barrels donated Fergus Falls Public Schools Fillmore Central School Division Fountain Public Schools Hinckley-Finlayson Public Schools ISD 191 Metcalf Middle School Howard Lake Public Schools Mankato Public Schools Pelican Rapids Public Schools Pine City School District Robbinsdale Public Schools Rochester Public Schools Roseville Area High School Sauk Centre School District Sibley East Elementary 11 Underwood School District Westbrook-Walnut Grove Schools Nourishing Children & Families Together Feeding America & the dairy community have doubled the amount of dairy distributed by Feeding America since 2016!
Milk to My Plate Grants 2019/2020
• Second Harvest Heartland -45 double sided reach in coolers • Channel One - 9 double sided milk coolers • Over 3.9 million pounds of dairy products tracked through the cooler donations
Data sourced from: Annual Fiscal Year Total Distribution of Dairy (Donated, USDA Government Programs, Purchased) Feeding America Supply Chain Research. Milk Life Raising Gallons Campaign
• Hunger Action Month Sept 2020 • Farmers partnering with NFL Players, Mascots, chefs, dietitians , Olympians • Part of the Great American Milk Drive program started in 2014 • 34+ Million Servings (8 oz) of Milk Providing Support For School Meals During COVID-19
Minnesota Stats $20 M+ raised $228,620 funds 121 MN Schools supporting 10,000 schools 66K students
www.GENYOUthNow.org/donate COVID-19 and Food Insecurity
Theresa McCormick
Director of Programs and Healthcare Partnerships Hunger creates long-term costs for our communities, resulting in health and physical development issues, poorer education The Issue outcomes and a less productive workforce. of Hunger We believe no one should ever go hungry, as our region produces more than enough food for everyone. Second Harvest Heartland
• Among the nation’s largest, most effective and innovative hunger-relief organizations in the United States.
• Our mission is to end hunger together.
• We achieve our mission by finding creative solutions to connect the full resources of our community with our hungry neighbors.
• We provide, on average, 84% of the food that is distributed by nearly 1,000 partners and programs in 41 counties in Minnesota and 18 counties in western Wisconsin. How food gets to our hungry neighbors The power of partnerships Second Harvest Heartland partners with nearly 1,000 food shelves, soup kitchens, shelters and other programs. These agency partners distribute food directly to their communities and into the hands of working families, children and seniors throughout a shared hunger relief network. Programs to Expand Hunger Relief
SNAP Outreach
School Meals
Commodity Supplemental Food Program
FOODRx 105 million meals distributed
63% of the food we distributed was fresh
Nearly 20,000 volunteers packed more than 4.8 million pounds of food. Hunger creates long-term costs for our communities, resulting in health and physical development issues, The Impact poorer education outcomes and a less productive of COVID-19 workforce. We believe no one should ever go hungry, as our region produces more than enough food for everyone. Hunger in the Heartland
Many of our hungry neighbors make tough decisions between food and other necessities. Responding to the Hunger Surge Addressing Disparities It feels good, as a mother, to “know your children will come home from school, open the fridge, find something there and be able to eat when they are hungry. ” - Anja Food Dignity® A New Paradigm to Address Food Insecurity
Twitter: @ClancyCHarrison FB: Clancy Harrison
#FoodDignity Recovering Food Elitist I projected my personal food philosophy!
✓Car access
✓Types of stores
✓Abundance of food
✓Clients had $$$ Al Beech West Side Food Pantry President & Founder, Food Dignity® Project My Lessons → Social Entrepreneur
✓Not the expert in ‘everything’ nutrition (and I don’t have to be). ✓I am not the expert in someone’s life. ✓I challenge my judgments every single day. ✓I seek to understand other people before I want them to understand me. ✓My purpose is greater than my fear. I was part of the problem, not the solution.
If we assume to understand a person’s barriers to food access and do not ask the right questions, we potentially: • Encourage the stigma associated with food assistance programs. • Increase the risk of 10 major chronic diseases. • Exacerbate existing chronic diseases. • Perpetuate the cycle of poor food access. • Perpetuate food injustice and food racism. Most people living with FI are: • working • looking for work • disabled • ill (mental, physical, emotional) • single mothers • children • elderly • college students • veterans • COVID-19 Food Dignity Defined
✓Human right Food Dignity® recognizes that food insecurity can affect anyone, so it does ✓Empathy not question or judge why someone ✓Trust needs access. It offers nutrient rich, ✓Pride desirable, and culturally appropriate food through innovative platforms that ✓Respect preserve dignity and honor our shared humanity. Food Security Definitions
High Food Security “no reported indications of food-access problems or limitations….. access by all people, at all times to sufficient food for an active and healthy life.”
Marginal Food Security “one or two reported indications- typically of anxiety over food sufficiency or shortage of food in the house.” Food Insecurity Definitions
Low Food Security “reports of reduced quality, variety, or desirability of diet. Little or no indication of reduced food intake”
Very Low Food Security “ reports of multiple indication of disrupted eating patterns and reduced food intake.” “It’s a feeling that one is not worth food.” -college student (JAND, 2019)
JAND, 2019. COVID 19 Impact Food Insecurity Rates in U.S.
35.2 M People → 50 Million People 11 M children → 17 Million Children (1 in 7) (1 in 4)
Feeding America 2020 . Compared to March 2019: 150 people to 2,000 people
A month’s worth of food GONE within 2-3 hours!
Pregnant Women/Fetus/Newborn Same as the adult high risks plus the following: Anxiety & depression Birth complications Birth defects Gestational diabetes Iron deficiency Low birth weight Preterm birth Stress on fetus Child Health Risks of Food Insecurity
Anxiety and behavior disorders, depression Emotional distress Low Bone Density ADHD Iron deficiency Low nutrient intake Links to adult disease (DM, CVD) Low cognitive development illness, emergency room visits, and hospitalization Suicide ideation Higher rates of forgone medical care Medical Coping Strategies
Forgo or postpone preventative or needed medical care
Skip food needed for medical meal plans
Medication- skip, take less, delay filling prescription, not taking with food High Cost of Food Insecurity (FI)
$52.9 billion in U.S. healthcare costs in 2019 caused by FI Nutrition Program Participation Hesitation
• Don’t qualify • Stigma • Treatment by staff or volunteers (i.e. racism) • Office/work hours • Lack of knowledge • Technical difficulties • Transportation
Access and Access Barriers to Getting Food Stamps: A Review of the Literature. February 2008. Food insecurity, social capital and perceived personal disparity in predominantly rural region of Texas: an individual-level analysis. 2011 Levels of Collaboration =
Yourself & Institutional Community Individual
Collective Efficacy
Collective efficacy is the capacity to make the changes necessary to better health and healthcare. Self-Collaboration Tips
✓ Be the student. ✓ Seek to understand before being understood. ✓ Define success from the client’s point of view, not yours. ✓ Step back for a clear view. ✓ Put yourself in unfamiliar situations.
We are the experts in food and nutrition but we are not the experts in someone’s life. Are we asking the right questions?
The Hunger Vital Sign 1.“Within the past 12 months we worried whether our food would run out before we got money to buy more.”
2.“Within the past 12 months the food we bought just didn’t last and we didn’t have money to get more.”
Often true, Sometimes true, Never true
http://www.childrenshealthwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/FINAL-Hunger-Vital-Sign-2-pager1.pdf Code for Food Insecurity
ICD-10-CM Diagnosis Code Z59.4 (lack of adequate food and safe drinking water)
ICD-10-CM Diagnosis Code Z59.5 (extreme poverty) Start where your clients are……
Poverty Middle Class Wealth
Food: Did you eat? Food: Did you like it? Food: Presentation? Time: decisions Time: future is Time: decisions based on survival Important made on tradition Education: not a Education: to climb Education: necessary reality the ladder for connections
Bridges to Health and Healthcare, 2014
Tips to address hidden rules • Decisions will be made against your way of thinking. • Survival is a reactive skill- not a planning skill. Food Negotiation Occurs with Surplus
We cannot help someone unless we understand barriers to food access.
•Transportation- taxi, bus, someone else’s car •Location of grocery store (Dollar store vs full-service grocery store) •Cooking equipment •Cooking skills Grocery Store Talking Points/Solutions
✓What is your favorite store to buy food at? ✓What is the closest store from where you live?
✓I know a lot of my clients rely on a dollar store for their food. Do you ever find yourself in a pinch and running into a dollar store for convenience?
✓I love the 10 for $10 sales at the grocery store. Do you find the sales helpful? Kitchen Equipment Talking Points
✓I run into so many problems with kitchen equipment in my home. Do you have the same issue?
✓What is your favorite way to cook food? If they say microwave, ask more questions- this might be their only method for cooking. Transportation Challenges
•Travel time is longer •Limited # of bags on public transportation •More planning is required •Various routes and stops Understand Barriers ✓ Individual Barriers ✓ Shame ✓ Resources ✓ Childhood experiences ✓ Knowledge ✓ Community Barriers ✓ Transportation ✓ Technology challenges ✓ Time/Work Survey to Determine Barriers
Text Dignity to 44222 Long-Term Food Solutions
Participants consume more milk, vegetables, protein food, and whole grains in the following programs:
•SNAP Supplemental Nutrition Program •National School Lunch Program •The National School Breakfast Program •Afterschool Snacks and Meals •The Summer Food Service Program •WIC (Special Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants, and Children)
Plant + Animal Protein = Win-Win
• Affordable • Tasty • Nutrient dense • Easy/low skill level cooking • Convenient • Accessible
Milk’s Nutrition Profile is Tough to Match
• Milk packs in 13 essential nutrients in every serving, including, protein, calcium, potassium, phosphorus, zinc, selenium, riboflavin, B12, pantothenic acid, niacin, iodine, vitamin A and vitamin D. • Milk is leading food source of 3 out of 4 nutrients of public health concern. (Ca, K, vitamin D) • Milk & milk products are recommended as a part of a healthy eating pattern.
National Health & Nutrition Examination Survey 2003-2006, Nutrients 2013 NHANDES 2003-2006, Nutrients 2012 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2015-2020
You have the power to make dry milk powder trendy, fun, unique, and a super food.
• Long shelf life • Easy to add to recipes • Increases nutrition in foods • Free at most food banks Prescribe Nutrition Programs Tips to Boost Nutrition with Dry Milk • Cooked cereals: add 1⁄2 cup dry milk to each cup of cereal before cooking • Mashed potatoes: add 1⁄4 cup dry milk for each cup of potatoes • Meatloaf, hamburger, taco meat: add up to 1 cup of dry milk per pound of meat • Quick breads: add 1⁄4 cup milk powder to each cup of fluid liquid Follow Up – Document- Track •Address concerns from prior appointment unique to the person •Transportation •Receiving food assistance yet? •Taking medications as directed? •Following medical meal plan? •How has their food access improved? Levels of Collaboration =
Yourself & Institutional Community Individual
Collective Efficacy
Collective efficacy is the capacity to make the changes necessary to better health and healthcare. Know YOUR Strengths What is it about YOU that builds capacity to mobilize others?
What is your power of influence? Effective collaboration ✓ Be a connector of resources ✓ Don’t start something new, strengthen another program by adding your expertise ✓ Know pain points ✓ Racially inclusive ✓ How can you connect your outcomes to their mission? Meet Kate Scarlata
Kate Scarlata MPH, RDN Owner, For a Digestive Peace of Mind Website- www.katescarlata.com Twitter @KateScarlata_RD Instagram: @katescarlata Meet Rebecca Garofano
✓ @veggiedoodlesoup ✓ graduate student in Nutrition Science at Syracuse University ✓ artwork throughout this presentation ✓ example of using passion and creativity to fight hunger with dignity. Local Professionals ✓Guidance Counselors/Nurses ✓WIC RD ✓Feeding America Food Bank RD ✓School food service director ✓Director for Faculty Development and Diversity ✓HBCU (Historically Black College/University) ✓Interns/Service Learning Programs ✓Federal Work Study Programs ✓Career Links Local Companies What businesses are suffering the most because of the COVID-19 shut down in your area?
• Ask people what companies they feel comfortable with? • Do your collaborations mirror the populations being served or who must be served?
Can you provide resource materials through HR or the business owner? Pediatricians/Pantries • 20 dyads in PA • Food pantry/pediatrician office • Pediatrician screens for FI • Refers to food pantry • VIP pass • Sample of produce, baby food, diapers • 20 families coming to food pantry Fresh Food Farmacy (Geisinger) • Screen FI • 5-day supply of food for entire household • Nutrition education • Cooking classes/recipes • Health coaches 3 Steps for Success 1. Prepare • Download FRAC toolkit • Educate, train • Policy, system changes • FI champion in office 2. Screen • Sensitivity • Hunger Vital Sign • Code FI 3. Intervene • Medical interventions (lab work, biometrics) • Prescribe patients to food assistance programs • Nutrition education • Document, track, follow up 81 Your Next Action Steps ✓Survey people to discover information and barriers ✓Adapt nutrition education strategies to bust barriers (transportation, working equipment, types of food retail, food assistance applications/identification) ✓Screen for food insecurity, code Dx, follow up, and document ✓Prescribe food assistance programs (SNAP, WIC, food banks)
Share Your Story Join the Food Dignity® Project for ongoing tools and resources! Text Dignity to 44222 The ultimate measure of humanity is not where we stand in moments of comfort and convenience, but where we stand in times of challenge and controversy. –paraphrasing Martin Luther King, JR Q & A
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85 Additional Information & Resources
86 Food Resources
• SNAP Online Screening: free online screening tool, generates an automatic referral to Second Harvest Heartland for SNAP application assistance
• SNAP FAQ
• Find Help Map
• SNAP in Schools Screening Toolkit
• Free Meals for Kids app
87 Top 3 Food Categories Missing From Diet: Veggies, Dairy, & Fruit
2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans Dietary Intakes Compared to Recommendations. Percent of US Population Ages 1 & Older Who Are Below, At or Above Each Dietary Goal Despite food insecurity and job loss, people still care about where their food comes from and its impact on the planet 44% of youth feel that 50% sustainability is now of consumers say even pandemic has made more important them more aware of post COVID *2 the environment *1 88% 82% of consumers want to of youth agree that see companies take sustainability was the lead in developing important to them more sustainable packaging solutions before COVID *3 *2
Source: 1. Kearny Consulting, 2. Ypulse, 3. The Hartman Group U.S. Dairy is an environmental solution
environmental stewardship goals for air, land
• Become carbon neutral or better • Optimize water use while maximizing recycling Click on Sustainability Video • Improve water quality by optimizing utilization of manure and nutrients US Dairy Stewardship Commitment. http://commitment.usdairy.com