The Governor's Goal 4 Healthy and Safe Communities

Governor Inslee has set forth a comprehensive set of goals for his administration which you can find outlined in a report entitled Results Washington.  One of the goals is Goal 4 Healthy and Safe Communities ~ Fostering the health of Washingtonians from a healthy start to a safe and supported future.  Within Goal #4 there is a leading indicator to increase healthier foods distributed by food banks and meal programs. The goal specifically states: Increase the percentage of healthier food options being offered to low-income children and families through food pantries, farmers markets and meal programs by 5% from 2014-2017.  

Tracking Data:

To achieve this indicator all EFAP Food Pantry and TEFAP Meal Program subcontractors will be asked to complete a baseline survey and quarterly reports which will ask for the percentage of all Healthier and Less Healthy food options that programs distribute to their clients.

The Healthier Options will be categorized in the five following ways:

1. Fruits and Vegetables

2. Dairy

3. Protein

4. Grains

5. Water (plain)

The Less Healthy Options will be categorized in the three following ways:

1. Processed food -  Food items such as desserts, chips, snack food, boxed meals

2. Other – Food items such as non-100% juices, beverages, enhanced flavored or

sweetened water, spices and condiments

3. Unknown – Food items you are unsure about their categorization based on the

options given.

Recording Percentages:

Subcontractors will be asked to record the percentage of ALL foods by category distributed regardless of the source (excluding CSFP). This will be achieved by estimating the percentage of pounds by category as well as actuals by the targeted month or a single day snapshot.  Meal Programs will be asked to report total number of meals served in a month and the number of service days in a month. 

Processing the Data:

Starting with a baseline survey in August, programs will complete quarterly reports for the next three years. These reports will be either recorded by hardcopy or by an electronic Excel form which will need to be submitted to your lead agency (Contractor). The contractors will be responsible for sending all reports to the WA State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) where the date will be compiled.   Once WSDA receives the estimated percentages by food category for Food Pantries, they will apply that to the pounds of food distributed which you already report for EFAP.  The percentages by food category being reported by Meal Programs will be applied to the total number of meals served per month multiplied by a standard pound per meal formula. 

Contractor Input:

WSDA worked with the Food Assistance Programs (FAP) Advisory Committee to develop temporary workgroups that focused on the definition of healthier food, an implementation plan, subcontractor report forms, and rollout timeframes.  Pilots were conducted in May and June by Thurston County Food Bank and Community Services of Moses Lake Food Bank for EFAP Food Pantry Subcontractors and Emergency Food Network for TEFAP Meal Program Subcontractors.  Feedback gathered from the programs taking part in the pilot will be considered in making adjustment to the report or reporting process.  This data will not be used to allocate funds or to negatively impact any subcontractor who distributes a low percentage of “healthier food options”.

Washington Food Coalition staff will help by messaging important information about this process, provide technical assistance, gather your additional input, and answer any further questions you may have.