MIDDLETOWN, Conn. March 23, 2011 – USDA Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services Kevin Concannon today joined Governor Dannel P. Malloy, U.S. Representative Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), and community leaders, chefs and education officials to launch the Connecticut No Kid Hungry® Campaign. The statewide, public-private partnership with Share Our Strength® and End Hunger Connecticut!, is designed to boost participation in federally-funded school-based food and nutrition programs over the next five years.

"USDA nutrition programs provide low-income kids healthy meals during the school year and in the summer so they can be better fueled to learn and reach their full potential," said USDA Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services Under Secretary Concannon. "We know our strength stems from our partnerships, and it takes all stakeholders - government agencies, educators, elected officials, corporations, advocates and community leaders - to ensure our nation's low-income children are on equal footing with their peers."

In Connecticut, more than 127,000 children are at risk of hunger. The Summer Meals Program provides children nutritious meals when school is out, but nearly 75 percent of eligible children don't receive summer meals. The After School Supper Program closes the dinnertime hunger gap so kids can focus on after-school activities and homework, but at least 24,000 eligible children don't participate in the program. Currently, there is just one After School Supper Program in the state serving approximately 100 children.

Share Our Strength, a national organization working to end childhood hunger, and End Hunger Connecticut!, a statewide anti-hunger and food security organization, have set a goal of increasing participation in summer meals by 10 percent in the first year by ensuring there are enough locations, launching an English/Spanish website with summer meal site listings and providing outreach grants to help organizations start up or expand summer meals programs.

Campaign partners also have a year one goal to increase enrollment in the After School Supper Program by 10 percent, serving an additional 2,400 meals. Partners will increase participation by reaching out to after school snack providers, summer meals sites, school meals vendors and state-funded after school programs in high-need communities to serve suppers.

Share Our Strength is spearheading the national No Kid Hungry Campaign and is working closely with the USDA's Food and Nutrition Service, who administers the federal food and nutrition programs to increase access to the programs at the national, state and local level.

In 2009, over 50 million individuals in the United States, or 16.6% of the population, lived in food insecure households. Children are most at risk. During the same time frame, over 17 million children lived in food insecure households. These homes had difficulty providing enough food for all their members due to a lack of resources at some time during the year. The anti-hunger initiatives announced today, along with the Stakeholder Guide to Ending Childhood Hunger recently published on USDA's Food and Nutrition Service website, are all tools to help individuals and families put food on the table.

Improving child nutrition is also a focal point of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act that was signed by President Obama on December 13, 2010. This legislation reauthorizes USDA's child nutrition programs, including the Summer Food Service Program and the National School Lunch Program, which serves nearly 32 million children each day. It will allow USDA, for the first time in over 30 years, the chance to make real reforms to the school lunch and breakfast programs by improving the critical nutrition and hunger safety net for millions of children. The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act is the legislative centerpiece of First Lady Michelle Obama's Let's Move! initiative. To learn more, visit www.LetsMove.gov.

USDA's Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) oversees the administration of 15 nutrition assistance programs, including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and the child nutrition programs, that touch the lives of one in four Americans over the course of a year. These programs work in concert to form a national safety net against hunger. Visit www.fns.usda.gov for information about FNS and nutrition assistance programs.

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