IFPA issues call to action to help preserve WIC fruit and vegetable benefit

The International Fresh Produce Association is calling on its members to act to protect the fruit and vegetable benefit in USDA’s WIC program.

The Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) provides federal grants to states for supplemental foods, health care referrals and nutrition education for low-income pregnant, breastfeeding, and non-breastfeeding postpartum women, and to infants and children up to age 5 who are found to be at nutritional risk.

According to IFPA, funding for fruits and vegetables could be at risk in a congressional vote on a long-term federal spending package. Without full funding, the WIC fruit and vegetable benefit in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children could be slashed by 70% for women and 56% for kids, bringing the allotment down to $13 and $11 a month for fruits and vegetables, the organization said in a statement.

That would translate to a more than $1 billion cut in retail produce sales, according to the statement.

The organization has launched an ad campaign aimed at preserving the fruit and vegetable benefit and is asking members to share the video ad.

The ad can be viewed here.