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Shining Light on Farm & Food Policy for 20 Years.
Thursday, April 25, 2024
The Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program serves only half of eligible participants, and USDA and WIC supporters want to see the program continue to expand to reach all those who qualify.
Everyone agrees it’s a mess and very few admit they actually want to see it happen, but it looks like Government Shutdown 2023 is set to become the latest example of the world’s largest economy grinding to a halt – or at least the federal government portion of it.
A shutdown of the federal government would put many of USDA's critical services at risk, including nutrition assistance, marketing and housing loans, and the ability to provide technical assistance to Congress as it works on writing the farm bill, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said.
House Republicans are trying to roll back an increase in fruit and vegetable benefits for women and kids participating in the WIC nutrition program, which has long had strong bipartisan support.
The dairy industry is urging USDA not to cut the amount of dairy available for the nearly 6 million mothers, infants and young children who participate in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children, best known as WIC.
Senior leadership from the International Dairy Foods Association and National Milk Producers Federation met Tuesday with top officials with USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service to share concerns regarding the agency’s proposed cuts to Women, Infants and Children benefits for milk and dairy purchases.
Proposed changes to the Women, Infants and Children program announced Thursday by USDA's Food and Nutrition Service would give a boost to fruit and vegetable consumption but de-emphasize dairy.
