USDA Food and Nutrition Service

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SNA ANC St. Louis, MO

July 15, 2019

Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) Disaster Feeding

steve.hortin@usda.gov

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Neither I nor any member of my immediate family have any relevant financial relationships with any commercial industry organizations associated with my presentation(s)

Affiliations or Financial Disclosures

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• 15 Nutrition Assistance Programs

• Serving 1 in 4 Americans each year

• $100 Billion budget

• FNS programs constitute 3/4ths of USDA budget

FNS Programs and Services

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1. Using USDA Foods for Emergency Feeding

2. Administrative waivers/flexibilities requested by States

3. Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (D-SNAP)

Primary Types of FNS Disaster Assistance

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Typical Disaster Feeding Timeline

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During a Presidentially Declared Disaster

1) Using USDA Foods for Emergency Feeding

State Agencies have the authority to use USDA Foods from nutrition assistance program inventories for congregate feeding.

✓Child Nutrition Programs• The Emergency Food Assistance Program• Food Distribution Programs on Indian Reservations• Commodity Supplemental Food Program

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USDA Foods’ Role in Disaster Response

•Foods are released by State Agency to Voluntary Organizations

•Foods are supplemental to FEMA Food

•Inventory is dependent on time of year and regular program demands

•Food is replaced by USDA to state & transportation fees are reimbursed

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Voluntary

Organizations

send request for

USDA Foods to

State Distributing

Agency

State approves

(congregate)

FNS approves

(HH feeding)

Local Inventories

State Inventories

Federal Inventories

USDA Diversions &

Emergency

Purchases

USDA Foods

taken from:

Local SitesWhere DFO’s

Prepare and Serve Food

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USDA Foods AvailableHousehold

(TEFAP, FDPIR, CSFP)

CANNED JUICE:

Orange, Apple, GrapefruitDAIRY OPTIONS:

Dried Egg MixUHT Fluid MilkPROTEIN OPTIONS:

Canned Chili w/o BeansCanned Beef StewCanned/Pouch ChickenGRAINS:

CerealMacaroni & Cheese

All Programs

CANNED FRUIT:

Peaches, Applesauce, Slice Apples Orange JuiceCANNED VEGETABLES:

Corn, Peas, Green Beans, Spaghetti Sauce, Vegetarian BeansPROTEIN OPTIONS:

Peanut Butter Canned PorkFrozen Cut-up ChickenGRAINS:

Rice, Flour, Pasta

*Infant Formula/Food (Special

Purchase for Disasters)

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Benefits of USDA Foods

❖ Quality and safety standards

❖ 100% domestic

❖ Nutrition standards

❖ Flexibility and versatility

❖ Same as commercial products

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Order of Access to

USDA Foods

for Disaster Feeding

Emergency Procurements

Diversion of Shipments

Rapid Food Response States

Neighboring State or Multifood Warehouse

Local/State/ITO

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Presidentially Declared Disaster Household Distribution

1) Using USDA Foods for Emergency Feeding

State Distributing Agencies must request permission to use USDA Foods from nutrition assistance program inventory for household distribution.

• Child Nutrition Programs✓ The Emergency Food Assistance Program✓ Food Distribution Programs on Indian Reservations✓ Commodity Supplemental Food Program

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Typical Disaster Feeding Timeline

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Examples: ➢ Using the same location while counting and claiming lunch and breakfast meals

separately for more than one school

➢ Waiver of meal pattern requirements-missing components

➢ Serving all school lunch and breakfast meals to students at no cost and claiming meals at the free reimbursement rate

➢ Offering free meals under CACFP to displaced families in shelters

➢ WIC substitutions: ready-to-feed formula for powdered; shelf stable containers of fluid milk or juice, etc.

➢ SNAP waivers- Reporting timeframes, Hot Food purchases, etc.

Administrative waivers/flexibilities requested by States

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Typical Disaster Feeding Timeline

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What is the Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program?

•D-SNAP is similar yet distinct from ‘regular’ SNAP;

•D-SNAP is a nutrition assistance program with temporary eligibility standards that serves disaster survivors;

•Typically, eligible households receive one month of benefits issued via an EBT card, which can be used to purchase food at most grocery stores.

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Who does D-SNAP serve?New Households

• Households not receiving ‘regular’ SNAP

• Applicants qualify based on disaster-related expenses

• Approved households receive one-month’s maximum SNAP allotment

Ongoing Households

• Are not eligible for D-SNAP, but:

• May be eligible for:

– Supplemental Benefits

–Replacement Benefits

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D-SNAP Authority, Approval and Eligibility•Operations approved when the affected area has

received a Presidential Disaster Declaration for Individual Assistance (IA)

•States request approval to operate; FNS approves operations for a limited period (typically 7 days)

•Eligible recipients must reside in the disaster area, have experienced adverse effects due to disaster, and meet income limits

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Disaster Feeding Working Group

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Disaster Feeding Working Group Members

➢USDA FNS & Center for Nutrition and Policy Promotion

➢Voluntary Organizations: American Red Cross; Salvation Army; Southern Baptists

➢FEMA Mass Care➢World Central Kitchen

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http://www.fns.usda.gov/disaster

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USDA Disaster Nutrition

Assistance Video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dA-Nx_v4b8A

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