Easing childhood hunger for National Dairy Month and beyond

Dairy Council of California and Let’s Eat Healthy support free summer meals

As schools let out for the summer, childhood hunger does not take a vacation. Summer can be a time when millions of California children lack access to the nutritious foods they need, making it the hungriest time of year for kids who depend on school meals.

In support of June’s National Dairy Month and in an effort to be a part of the solution to bridge the summer hunger gap, Dairy Council of California, through its Let’s Eat Healthy initiative, is bringing awareness to the free USDA Summer Food Service Program, which provides all children with the nutritious foods they need to grow, play and thrive while school is out.

“Dairy foods are a nutritional powerhouse, providing essential nutrients that are easily accessible and readily available through Summer Meal Programs. Limited awareness on where to access summer meals continues to be a challenge for families,” states Dairy Council of California CEO Tammy Anderson-Wise. “June’s National Dairy Month celebrates the role dairy plays in keeping us all healthy, making it the perfect time to raise awareness on how families can locate summer meals to help children access healthy foods while schools are out on summer break.”

One thing that makes Summer Meal Programs so phenomenal for families is the ease in accessing food:

• No paperwork is required.
•  Families text “Food” for English or “Comida” for Spanish to 304-304 to find food distribution sites.

Summer Meal Programs can engage the whole community and help children develop healthy eating habits through nutrition education enrichment activities. To celebrate National Dairy Month and support agriculture and dairy literacy education, Dairy Council of California is partnering with California Foundation for Agriculture in the Classroom to offer a Taste and Teach lesson to engage students as they learn about dairy foods. To access the Taste and Teach lesson and other nutrition education activities and resources for summer, visit HealthyEating.org/SummerMeals.

“Milk goes from the farm to store in just two days! These are some of the ag facts, along with taste testing activities, that our Taste and Teach program provides educators throughout California. Collaborations, such as this partnership with the Dairy Council of California, help further our mission of increasing awareness and understanding of California agriculture,” states Judy Culbertson, executive director of California Foundation for Agriculture in the Classroom.

Healthier children and families begin by coming together to build healthier communities. Join the Let’s Eat Healthy initiative today to help champion community health by teaching nutrition, inspiring healthy choices and finding solutions to make nutritious foods, like milk and dairy foods, accessible and affordable to all. To join, visit HealthyEating.org/Join.