Food resources Sample Clauses

Food resources. According to KI-1, most farm workers are allowed to take vegetables home from the fields where they work, but this practice is not readily taken up by farm workers due to lack of familiarity with certain vegetables, like broccoli. Some FGDPs were aware of food stamps through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), but none of them expressed familiarity with the program or said they had received food stamps. This lack of familiarity might be due to SNAP regulations that bar all undocumented immigrants from receiving benefits; documented immigrants can receive benefits if they are children, disabled, or have lived in the US legally for at least five years (Food Research and Action Center, 2010). Members of all three FGDs were familiar with the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC). Their knowledge about the program likely came from information provided by the clinic regarding applying for WIC benefit. Several participants suggested that applying for WIC benefits would be a way for a woman in the farm worker community to help her family eat healthier foods. KI-1 echoed this recommendation but pointed out that there are often challenges associated with qualifying for/obtaining WIC benefits (e.g., finding transportation to the WIC office). KI-1 described the clinic’s nutrition education course as a way for families to learn about healthy eating. While many FGDPs expressed interest in learning more about the course, very few of them had heard of the program prior to attending the FGD. Likewise, the FGDPs did not mention the local food bank as a source of assistance, which poses the (potentially difficult to answer) question of how frequently migrant farm workers actually use the food bank. Nevertheless, two key informants discussed the food bank at length. KI-1 pointed out that while the food bank provides food to those in need, individuals/families are only allowed to request food once every three months. KI-3 also acknowledged that there are limits in place but said the rule was one request per thirty days. Further clarification about this discordant information provided by KI-1 and KI-3 revealed that, while the food bank used to allow only one request per person/family every three months, their current guidelines do, indeed, permit one request every thirty days. In addition, KI-3 said the food bank makes exceptions to this rule in emergency situations. Referral agencies can make their own rules about reque...