WIC Food Packages……… Time For A Change

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WIC Food Packages Time For A Change

• Karen Sell
• Arizona WIC Director
• Arizona Department of Health Services

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Its Time For A Change!

• Since 1974 there have been many changes in
• The WIC Program and the population it serves
• The food supply and food consumption
• Diet related health risks
• Nutrition knowledge and
• Dietary guidance.

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Arizona WIC Program Facts

• Provides services for 174,000 women, infants, and
  children each month.
• Has over 101,000 Arizona families are currently
  enrolled.
• Over 60 percent of the infants born in Arizona
  are on the WIC Program.
• Purchases 7 million of food per month.

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Opportunity

• Help promote optimum growth and development for
  Arizona children.
• Enhance WIC nutrition education
• Better support breastfeeding
• Increase access to healthy food especially in
  small stores
• Strengthen partnerships with vendors and with
  other nutrition program and services for WIC
  families.

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Making Meals More Nutritious

• Fruits and Vegetables
• Whole Grains
• Breastfeeding
• Dietary Guidance for Infants and Young Children
• Saturated Fat
• Participant Choice

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Encourage Consumption of Fruits and Vegetables

• Provide-cash-value voucher for fresh fruits and
  vegetables.
• Processed options as alternatives (e.g., canned,
  frozen, dried)
• Provide baby-food fruits and vegetables for older
  infants.
• Reduce the amount of juice to match current
  recommendation.

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Emphasize Whole Grains

• Cereal must qualify as whole grain (using FDA
  definition of 51 whole grains).
• Additional whole grain foods added to most
  packages.
• A variety of whole grains recommended (whole
  wheat bread, brown rice, oatmeal, corn tortillas,
  etc.)

8
Provide Incentives for Breastfeeding

• Provide less formula for partially breast-fed
  infants.
• Discourage use of formula in the first month for
  breast-fed infants.
• Increase the market value for fully breastfeeding
  mother and infant pairs.

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Consistent with Current Dietary Guidance for
Infants

• Complimentary foods provided beginning at age six
  (6) months of age.
• Juice eliminated in favor of baby food fruits and
  vegetables to promote healthy eating patterns.
• Baby food meats provided to fully breast-fed
  infants after six (6) months of age to provide
  iron and zinc informs that are easily absorbed
  and utilized by the body.

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Consistent with Current Dietary Guidance for
Young Children

• Juice limited to four (4) fluid ounces per day.
• Whole fruits and vegetables added to provide
  additional nutritional benefits and build healthy
  eating patterns.
• Fat-reduced milk (no more than 2 milk fat)
  provided for children two (2) years of age or
  older.
• Whole milk is provided for one (1) year old
  children.

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Lower Saturated Fat

• Less cheese allowed as a milk substitute.
• Milk must be reduced-fat, low fat, or non-fat for
  women and children over the age of two (2) years.

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Increase Participant Choices

• Wide selection of fruits and vegetables,
  including process of options
• Variety of whole grain choices
• More substitutes allowed for milk
• Canned as well as dried beans permitted
• Expanded choice of low mercury canned fish
  (salmon, tuna, sardines)

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Nutrition Education

• Tailored to optimize the effectiveness of the
  food package.
• Food Choices
• Shopping
• Feeding infant and young children and/or
• Food storage, preparation, and safety.

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Impact

• Participants
• Local WIC Programs
• State WIC Programs
• Retail Stores
• Food Manufacturers

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Participants

• More diverse and balanced food packages
• Greater variety and choice
• Choices consistent with Dietary Guidelines for
  Americans
• More culturally appropriate foods
• Supports improved nutrient intakes and
• Addresses nutrition-related concerns
• (e.g. obesity, low breastfeeding rates).

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Local WIC Programs

• Opportunity to re-connect nutrition education to
  WIC foods
• Enhances breastfeeding support activities
• Greater flexibility to prescribe foods that are
  culturally appropriate or that better address
  health concerns of the participant and
• Responsible for staff training on new foods and
  promotion of food packages to participants.

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State WIC Programs

• Opportunity to focus nutrition education of WIC
  foods
• More flexibility to authorize appropriate foods
• Continue to have flexibility to select foods for
  the State food list within the Federal Rule.
• Responsible for planning and implementing the new
  Food Package Rule within existing resources.

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Retail Stores

• Under the new rules, WIC vendors are required to
• Stock new WIC foods, including at least two
  varieties of fruits, two varieties of vegetables,
  and at least one whole grain cereal. (Different
  minimums may be established.)
• Transact and process cash-value vouchers for
  fruit and vegetables.
• Change quantities of current foods.
• Ensure that staff are trained and that revisions
  are made to operations.

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Food Manufacturers

• New minimum nutrient requirements and
  specifications for WIC-eligible foods, i.e.
• Soy beverage
• Whole wheat and whole grain bread
• Whole grain cereal
• Fruits and vegetables
• Infant foods
• Canned fish
• Create new opportunities for WIC customers

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Conclusion

• The WIC Program and its partners can lead the way
  in helping low-income families make meals more
  nutritious.

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Conclusion, continued

• Benefits will be life-long, in terms of changing
  food intake patterns and healthier diets.

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Conclusion, continued

• The changes will help make a good program become
  even better.