Summer EBT replacement, Healthy Kids Iowa, opens. How to get food:
Hear from three Iowans as they share the challenges of food insecurity
Iowans Marisol Saldaña Leza, Paul Tullis and Autumn Barongan share their experiences as they face the challenges of food insecurity.
- Iowa launched Healthy Kids Iowa, a new summer food program for low-income children, that replaces Summer EBT.
- The program provides $40 worth of nutritious food per eligible child monthly.
- Six Iowa food banks manage 258 distribution sites across the state.
Healthy Kids Iowa, a new state summer feeding program for low-income children, has begun, with some sites hosting their first food distributions this week.
State officials started Healthy Kids Iowa, an alternative to the federal Summer Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) program that provides families a prepaid debit card with $40 a month per eligible child to purchase groceries over the three-month summer break. This year — its second year opting out of Summer EBT — Iowa is piloting a program that offers families access to $40 worth of nutritious food per child.
The Iowa Department of Health and Human Services contracted six Iowa Feeding America food banks to determine the 258 distribution sites, which were posted on the department’s website June 5. More sites may be added, said Alex Murphy, an Iowa HHS spokesperson.
The program initially was expected to start June 1, Murphy said in an email in May.
Food bank leaders that the Des Moines Register interviewed said they had roughly a month to plan the statewide program aimed at feeding thousands of children, work with local partners to fill food orders and find the right sites to distribute the food.
Chris Ford, president and CEO of the River Bend Food Bank in Davenport, said his team was “hyper-focused” the last 10 days, ironing out the final details. His team had to consider whether sites had room for the program and clients could easily access them.
“There’s no doubt in my mind, (a) first go in a program like this, there’s going to be questions that arise,” Ford said. “And we’ll deal with those as they come. For the most part, we’ve got the food. We’ve got the locations picked out.”
Barbara Prather, executive director of the Northeast Iowa Food Bank in Waterloo, echoed a similar sentiment.
“Anytime you have six weeks to do something, that is a pretty big lift for your team. You do what you can and make it work, absolutely, and that’s why we term it a pilot,” Prather said. “And I keep stressing that to them: This is a pilot.”
Here’s what to know about the program:
How many sites are in Polk County?
Des Moines-based Food Bank of Iowa serves 55 counties and plans to oversee 125 Healthy Kids Iowa pantry sites — 14 of which are in Polk County. Of that 14, six are at the following Des Moines Public Schools:
- Capitol View Elementary, 320 E. 16th St.
- Weeks Middle School, 901 E. Park Ave.
- Morris Elementary, 1401 Geil Ave.
- Roosevelt High School, 4419 Center St.
- Garton Elementary, 2820 E. 24th St.
- Monroe Elementary, 3015 Francis Ave.
Times and dates of locations vary. For a full list of Healthy Kids Iowa pantry sites, visit the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services at hhs.iowa.gov/healthy-kids-iowa.
How often can families pick up food from the sites?
Families with eligible children can pick up food once a month in June, July and August. Food bank leaders said they are expected to track families participating in the program and report monthly to the state department.
Prather said Healthy Kids Iowa is one of many other programs available to families. Northeast Iowa is the only one of the six banks that offers children across 16 counties free lunch and snacks during the summer.
What does $40 of food look like?
The items may slightly vary at each of the six food banks, food bank leaders said, but participants can expect some of the following:
- shelf-stable milk
- fresh eggs and produce such as advocados, grapes and pears
- dairy products, including 1% milk and shredded cheese
- canned fruit and vegetables
- peanut butter
- ground beef
Who is eligible for this program?
This program is for households with children ages 4 to 18 and who live at 185% below the federal poverty level. For a family of four, that equates to an annual income of about $59,477, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Households that have qualified for The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) also can participate in this program.
F. Amanda Tugade covers social justice issues for the Des Moines Register. Email her at [email protected] or follow her on X @writefelissa.
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