
On June
21st, farmers at the YMCA Youth Center in Birmingham, farm
group leaders, Neighborhood Presidents, community activists,
religious leaders, nonprofit advocates, Extension agents
and others gathered to share information on efforts around
the state and region to expand Alabama’s food access.
The Food Summit 2008 was a hugh success and began a great
step toward putting food on the table in Birmingham. Visit
our blog for a great review from FoodRevival.com. You can
also click here
to read an article about the food summit from the Birmingham
Weekly.
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NEWS
FROM THE FARM BILL
•
The Food Stamp Program is renamed the Supplemental
Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and “food
stamps” will now be called “supplemental nutrition
assistance program benefits”.
• Supplemental nutrition assistance program benefits
are now increased, indexed to inflation, and certain military
payments, retirement accounts, and education accounts are
excluded from income for the purposes of determining SNAP
eligibility.
• A pilot program has been added to evaluate health
and nutrition promotion in SNAP (Section 4141). The purpose
of the program is to reduce overweight, obesity, and associated
“co-morbidities” in the US among SNAP recipients,
and will receive $20,000,000 in mandatory funding.
• Section 4303 establishes a Healthy Food Education
and Program Replicability which would put hands-on vegetable
gardening education into high-poverty schools. The provision
does not mention funding.
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PO
Box 10703 | Birmingham, AL 35202 | (205) 591-3663 |