August 2023
Sara Croymans, Extension Educator, Family Resiliency
According to the USDA, more than 10 percent of U.S. households were food insecure in 2021, and the Department of Defense has reported that 24 percent of military families are food insecure. Food insecurity adversely impacts racial/ethnic minority populations, lower-income populations, and rural and remote populations. Additionally, a rise in economic insecurity throughout the Covid-19 pandemic has contributed to increased food insecurity in vulnerable populations. This year, OneOp has focused on programming for service providers and educators to connect at-risk families to programs and services.
Food Security in Focus is a collection of free programming that equips professionals with tools and information about the prevalence of food insecurity and connects them with resources to help families who are at risk. This programming highlights how each of us can contribute to the Military Family Readiness System whose goal is to improve family well-being through a network of government agencies and community-based organizations that support families. Live and on-demand webinars in the Food Security in Focus series include:
- Understanding the Social and Structural Drivers of Food and Nutrition Insecurity
- Waste Not, Want Not: Reducing Food Waste in Your Communities
- Increasing Children’s Fruit and Vegetable Exposure: Tools for Practitioners Serving Families Experiencing Limited Income
- Helping Clients Inflation-Proof Their Budget
- Medicaid, Food Security, & the Social Determinants of Health & Well-being
- Supporting Nutrition Security for Military Families through a Multilayered Approach (Note: the presenter for this webinar was Noelle Harden, UMN Extension Health & Nutrition Educator)
- SNAP and SNAP-Ed: Supporting Food and Nutrition Security in Your Community
- Enhancing Food Security for Military Families with Cooperative Extension
- Respectful, Evidence-Based Care for Children with Elevated BMI
In June, OneOp continued to focus on food insecurity among military families during the Military Family Readiness Academy - Military Families and Food Security: A Call to Action. Available programming includes:
- A self-paced, asynchronous course, Advancing Food Security for Military Families, is beneficial for all providers in any field interested in food security
- On-demand webinars:
- Supportive Programs and Benefits to Expand Food Security for Military Families
- Building Networks to Alleviate Food Insecurity
A variety of free CEUs are available for participants of the webinars and course.
OneOp collaborates with the Department of Defense and Cooperative Extension to provide free and open-access learning opportunities within a full spectrum of family service subject areas. Extension Educator Sara Croymans is part of the OneOp Family Transitions team.
This material is based upon work supported by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the Office of Military Family Readiness Policy, U.S. Department of Defense under Award Number 2019-48770-30366.