More than 20 per cent of Vermont families with children did not have enough money to buy the food they needed in 2008-9 according to a new report released by the Food Research and Action Center (FRAC).

“This new data affirms what we are hearing from local communities - that more children are going hungry,” notes Marissa Parisi, Executive Director of the Vermont Campaign to End Childhood Hunger. “Teachers and child care providers report hungry children are often ill, unable to focus, and have difficulty learning,” says Ms. Parisi.

As the recession has deepened, the number of Vermont households struggling to meet basic needs has increased. Almost 1 in 6 of all Vermont households report not being able to purchase enough food at some time during 2008-9. The child nutrition programs that feed children in child care, school, after school and during the summer are increasingly important in providing the nutritious food many families cannot afford. These programs are underutilized in Vermont because they are more difficult to access and administer in rural areas. This year, the reauthorization of the programs at the federal level is an opportunity to change some of the regulations and improve the programs so more rural children can be fed. In addition, state budget cuts have prevented the use of federal nutrition programs that would work well in Vermont, like a program that provides supper meals in extended afterschool programs.

“Despite the deepening recession Vermont has done stellar work in the last year to strengthen our first lines of defense against hunger in Vermont through the 3SquaresVT program and increased access to free school breakfasts across the state,” Senator Patrick Leahy said. “We work hard in Vermont to keep hunger relief the high priority that it needs to be, and we know that still more needs to be done because far too many Vermonters are forced to choose between putting healthy food on the table and paying their rent or heating their homes.” Leahy is the most senior member of the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee.