School Meals Expansion Bill Passes the New Jersey Senate
The New Jersey Senate voted in favor of legislation that expands access to free school breakfast and lunch to more students in the Garden State. This legislation, sponsored by Speaker…
New Resource for College Students
There's a new resource out there for NJ college students who may need assistance with food, housing, transportation, and other matters. BasicNeeds.NJ.gov is the new site to find centralized information,…
The 2024 Good Food Bucks Application for Farmers and Markets is Now Open!
All farm and market partners in 2024 will receive grants up to $10,000 in Good Food Bucks!
Food Insecurity Increased in 2022, With Severe Impact on Households With Children and Ongoing Racial Inequities
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) released its annual report on food security, showing that 44.2 million people (in 17.0 million households) in the U.S. could not afford enough food to eat at some point in 2022. Overall, food insecurity increased from 10.2 percent in 2021 to 12.8 percent in 2022 — resulting in 10.3 million more people, including 4.1 million more children, who lived in households that experienced food insecurity in 2022 compared to 2021 — reflecting higher food costs and the phasing out of many pandemic relief measures.
As Many as 124,200 Young Children and New Parents in New Jersey Could Be Turned Away From WIC or Have Their Benefits Cut Under Pending Appropriations Bills
Funding in fiscal year 2024 Senate and House appropriations bills for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) falls far short of what is needed to provide all eligible families who apply with the full nutrition assistance benefit. Across the states, these proposed funding levels would result in WIC turning away 600,000 eligible new parents and young children, and the House bill would sharply cut benefits for another 4.7 million.
A beautiful girl eating fresh fruit
Looming WIC Funding Shortfall Would Jeopardize Access to WIC’s Proven Benefits and Disproportionately Harm Black and Hispanic Families
Unfortunately, WIC is facing a funding shortfall for the first time in decades due to higher-than-expected participation and food costs, jeopardizing access to this highly effective program and risking disproportionate harm for Black and Hispanic families.
A push for universal free school lunches in NJ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sgt-6NOx5eQ&t=32s According to federal data, nearly 400,000 of the 1.4 million schoolchildren in New Jersey received a free or reduced-price meal at school between 2019 and 2020. And according to…
Advocates call on New Jersey lawmakers to make school meals free for all students
BY: SOPHIE NIETO-MUNOZ - SEPTEMBER 7, 2023 7:13 AM As New Jersey students returned to classrooms this week, the number of them eligible for free or reduced school breakfast and lunch jumped —…
14,100 NJ Young Children and New Parents Could Be Turned Away Unless Congress Adheres to a 25-Year Bipartisan Commitment to Fully Fund WIC
Funding in a 2024 Senate appropriations bill for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) falls far short of what is needed to provide all eligible…
Thousands of Young Children and Postpartum Adults Would Be Turned Away from WIC under House and Senate Funding Levels
New data from Center on Budget and Policy Priorities shows that WIC needs significant additional funding to maintain a commitment to avoid turning away eligible families. Between 17k and 124k…
