Save the Children's Rural Child Hunger Research and Innovation Lab aims to help communities design and test new, creative ways to reduce rural child hunger.

According to a report called Map the Meal Gap from the nonprofit Feeding America, nine out of 10 counties with the highest food-insecurity rates are rural.

Tamara Sandberg, senior adviser for food security at Save the Children, said lessons learned during the pandemic increased flexibility for federally funded food programs across the country. She hopes the lab will allow communities to continue problem-solving to ensure more Arkansas kids do not go hungry.

"The idea of the Rural Child hunger Research and Innovation Lab is to lift up ideas from within rural communities," Sandberg explained. "Provide them with the support to incubate their ideas, and then funding and technical assistance to try out their ideas."

Sandberg added they are trying to keep momentum going to reduce the barriers children in rural communities have when they are trying to access the food they need to succeed.

More than 444,000 Arkansans are not always sure where their next meal is coming from, according to Feeding America, and more than 138,000 of them are children.

Audrey Freshwater, Arkansas state director for Save the Children, said it is estimated 20% of rural children experience food insecurity.

"And this is a projected increase higher than pre-pandemic levels," Freshwater pointed out. "Here in Arkansas, one in six households with children reported not having enough food in their homes this past year. "

Freshwater noted although they have great support from local food banks, there are barriers such as geographic isolation, lack of transportation and food deserts making it difficult for families to access reliable, affordable and nutritious food options.

She added they are combating food insecurity in rural Arkansas by providing meals to families in need. She stressed hungry children are more likely to have lower math scores, repeat a grade, come to school late, or miss school entirely.

"Since the start of the COVID pandemic, we've helped provide nearly 45 million meals to children and families," Freshwater recounted. "Here in Arkansas, Save the Children has helped distribute nearly 1.4 million meals to families who have needed it the most since the start of the pandemic."

The group partnered with a school district in Mountain View, in northern Arkansas, via the school's food pantry to provide food boxes, critical meals and snacks as well as learning resources to families such as books, learning tools and toys.

Tennessee has expanded food assistance for Northeast Tennessee residents still cleaning up after Hurricane Helene.

What's known as the Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program is in effect for current SNAP recipients in the eight counties affected.

Signe Anderson, senior director of nutrition advocacy for the Tennessee Justice Center, said benefits are provided through an electronic debit card and can be used to purchase food items at grocery stores and other authorized retailers who accept electronic benefit transfer.

"The state has been able to secure an automatic mass reimbursement of 65% to SNAP participants who are already part of the program," Anderson reported. "With the knowledge that so many people lost power, there was major devastation."

The Tennessee Department of Human Services has also temporarily allowed SNAP recipients in 13 counties to use their benefits to purchase hot foods due to the challenges of hurricane recovery.

Anderson thinks the 65% reimbursement is a good start but pointed out the USDA approved more waivers for households to get the full 100% reimbursement back by filling out an affidavit on its website. The waiver covers Carter, Hawkins, Johnson, Unicoi and Washington counties.

She added Cocke, Greene and Hamblen counties were not approved in the waiver.

"The state did say, even if you're not in one of these listed counties but you're in one of those bordering counties, you should apply through the affidavit and make your case," Anderson explained. "Unfortunately, those individuals in the surrounding counties aren't automatically reimbursed but if they reach out to DHS through the affidavit, they're likely to get help."

She added President Joe Biden's FEMA disaster declaration allows the state to do even more. The assistance includes grants for temporary housing and home repairs, low-cost loans to cover uninsured property losses and other programs to help individuals and business owners recover from the effects of the disaster.


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It is National School Lunch Week and groups in Oregon are taking the opportunity to encourage lawmakers to make school meals available to every kid in the state.

The School Meals for All coalition is calling for legislation to make breakfast and lunch free for all Oregon students. The coalition wants lawmakers to adopt the policy during the 2025 session.

David Wieland, policy advocate for the group Partners for a Hunger-Free Oregon, said the state is already close to the goal.

"About 1,191 schools in the state are already participating and we're only 65 schools away," Wieland reported. "We're so close to the finish line in realizing this vision."

Nine states have adopted universal school meals. Opponents have pointed to the high cost of providing meals to every student in the state but one in six Oregon children faces hunger, according to Feeding America data.

Loren Naldoza, public policy advocate for Oregon Food Bank, said free school meals have a number of benefits, including helping students academically.

"Our fight for a universal school meals program ensures that any student who doesn't have a lunch that day won't have to worry about being hungry because one will be ready for them," Naldoza emphasized. "We're going to see this pay off, in the short term and in the long term."

Wieland added the policy the School Meals for All coalition is pushing for would also improve food quality.

"Moving to free a breakfast and lunch program gets rid of the administrative overhead," Wieland noted. "Our proposal is going to slightly increase funding so that more money is going to fresh ingredients that are scratch cooked, and children enjoy and deserve."

A New Mexico food bank has expanded outreach to the state's Indigenous communities by hiring a Director of Tribal Relations.

Candice Griego will help Roadrunner Food Bank collaborate more closely with tribal communities to better identify food insecurity and find culturally responsive solutions that respect their needs.

New Mexico is one of the most rural states in the country, and Griego said tribal community members must often travel 50 miles or more to get groceries.

"A lot of these tribal communities are located in rural areas," said Griego, "where they're in food deserts, where there's not necessarily a lot of grocery stores. That's experienced a lot on the Navajo Reservation."

Griego, whose background is primarily in healthcare, is enrolled as a Zia Pueblo tribal member. She said the food bank already has started seven new food distributions on the Navajo Nation.

Griego said she hopes to gain a better understanding of which tribes need monthly or bimonthly food distributions from Roadrunner and provide them with culturally appropriate foods when possible.

She said that requires regular outreach to tribal leaders and communities.

"They feel comfortable in connecting with me and asking me for certain food products," said Griego. "So, just building that relationship and having that comfort level, and them knowing they can reach out to me."

Native Americans make up nearly 11% of the New Mexico population. In addition to the Navajo Reservation, the state is home to 23 Indian tribes, 19 Pueblos, and three Apache tribes.

The food bank anticipates hosting a tribal community focused event in early November during Native American Heritage Month.