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WIC’s Fruit And Veggie Allowance Increase Is Now Permanent. Why That Matters In LA
Monthly WIC benefits for whole grains, dairy, dried beans, peanut butter, produce and more come loaded onto a debit-like card. We've obscured this participant's number for privacy.
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Mariana Dale and Alborz Kamalizad
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LAist
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Topline:
The federally-funded Women, Infants, Children (WIC) program, which supplements food budgets for some 280,000 families in L.A. County, made COIV-19 era increases to fruit and veggie allowances permanent last week. It also expanded food options to include whole wheat pita, naan quinoa and other more culturally diverse options.
The backstory: The $26 monthly WIC fruit and vegetable voucher for children under 5 will be made permanent under the newly adopted federal rules. That’s more than double the $9 a month for children that was allowed before 2021.
The fruit and vegetable monthly allowance was increased considerably as a response to COVID-19 and local WIC programs worried the allowance would go back down again.
Why it matters: Shannon Whaley, WIC Director of Research and Evaluation for the Public Health Foundation Enterprise, said the increased allowance has had a “huge impact on the local economy in addition to the increased food security for families with low-incomes.”
Whaley also said that her agency has seen a 10% bump in food secure families in L.A. County since the vouchers were increased, from about 45% food secure in 2021 to about 55% this year.
How to apply for WIC: You can text APPLY to 91997
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