1. I am delighted to talk with you about the benefits of our food bank developing a nutrition policy.
There are benefits for our clients, the health system, and for the [Name of Food Bank] to become a leader and model organization that provides food to needy families.

2. These diseases and conditions all have several risk factors in common.
Do you know clients or community members with diabetes? heart disease? high blood pressure? Or cancer?
These diseases and conditions all have several risk factors in common.
One of those risk factors is poor nutrition; particularly diets high in calories, fat, sugar and salt.
Copyright © 2014 The Regents of the University of California, All Rights Reserved
Created by Michelle Ross, Elizabeth Campbell, Karen Webb & Laura Vollmer Atkins Center for Weight and Health at UC Berkeley
Photo credit: Alameda County Community Food Bank
Photo credit: Alameda County Community Food Bank

3. DIAGNOSED DIABETES WAS UNCOMMON BEFORE 1994
Here is a map showing the prevalence of diabetes in The light colored states have lower prevalence than the darker colored states, between 4 and 6 percent of the population.

4. And here is the same map showing the prevalence of diagnosed diabetes in 2010.
As you can see by the darker colors, the prevalence has increased significantly in all states. In most states, it’s doubled!

5. According to the CDC, 29 million people or 1 in 10 people in the United States have diabetes.
That’s the equivalent of filling this years Super-bowl stadium 400 times !

6. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
Of the 29 million American who have diabetes, 1 in 4 people don’t know they have it.
But more alarming yet, 86 million people have pre-diabetes and nine out of 10 of them DON’T even know it.
For many, pre-diabetes turns into diabetes within five years.
People with diabetes are 50% more likely to die young and to get serious complications like blindness and kidney disease.
And all of this comes with a $245 billion price tag for medical costs and lost wages.
Source: CDC, 2014, National Diabetes Statistic Report

7. Leading cause of death for Americans
Many premature deaths from heart disease are preventable
Heart disease, including heart attacks and strokes, is the #1 killer in the US, accounting for 1 in 3 deaths.
Many of these deaths occur prematurely in people under age 65 and are preventable.
Source: CDC,
Source: CDC, 2013

8. Child overweight and obesity increased in past two decades
Type 2 diabetes increasing among children, particularly minority populations
Iron deficiency is common, leads to poor learning performance and fatigue
Poor nutrition not only affects adults, it can affect children too.
According to the CDC, one third of children ages 2-19 are overweight or obese.
Type 2 diabetes used to be unheard of in children, but is becoming more common.
Poor nutrition can also lead to iron deficiency, and is associated with poor learning performance and fatigue
Source: Ogden, 2014; CDC Childhood Obesity Facts; American Diabetes Association Statistics About Diabetes; CDC National Diabetes Statistic Report, 2014; CDC Nutrition and The Health of Young People
Photo credit: Alameda County Community Food Bank

9. So, we’ve talked about how diet related chronic disease and poor nutrition are serious problems for many Americans of all ages.
But food insecure households, the households we serve, have an even greater risk for poor health, and fewer resources to take care of themselves.
Low-income people are more likely to develop overweight and obesity, diabetes, and high blood pressure than people in middle or upper income groups.
Research shows that the risk of diabetes is about 50% higher among adults in food-insecure households than among other adults. (Seligman)
And The risk of high blood pressure is about 20% higher. (Seligman)
Source: Seligman, Hilary K., Barbara A. Laraia, and Margot B. Kushel. "Food insecurity is associated with chronic disease among low-income NHANES participants." The Journal of nutrition (2010):

10. And now we have data that shows food bank clients are significantly affected by these diet-related chronic diseases.
Feeding America recently conducted a study, of more than 60,000 food bank clients,.
Here are some of the results in the report, Hunger in America 2014
More than 50 percent of households had at least one member with high blood pressure.
One third of households had a member with diabetes.
Of households with seniors, nearly 50% have a member with diabetes, and over 75% have a member with high blood pressure.

11. Diet is one of several risk factors for these diseases.
But what kinds of foods are contributing to these diseases?
The answer is foods and eating patterns that are high in calories, fat, sugar, and salt.

12. This graph shows where we are all missing the mark when it comes to meeting the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.
It shows that we’re eating more than recommended amounts of meats and grains; and most of the meat is high in fat, and most of the grains are refined. We get too few servings of vegetables, dairy, and fruits. And most of the vegetables we eat are fried potatoes.
Source: USDA ERS, Food Availability (Per Capita) Data System, Summary of Findings website. Available at; Accessed January 30, 2015.

13. We also have some specific information from two studies of food bank clients that show.
That diet quality is poorer among pantry users than the general population:
In one pantry in Alabama, women said they did not eat any whole grains, fruits, or dark-green and orange vegetables.
They also report eating foods high in calories, fat, salt, and sugar.
89% of them were overweight.
 2. A Hartford, CT survey found that the more food insecure that clients were, the less likely they were to eat fruits and vegetables.
Sources: Duffy, P., et al. (2009). "Diet quality is low among female food pantry clients in Eastern Alabama." J Nutr Educ Behav 41(6): ; Robaina, K. A. and K. S. Martin (2013). "Food insecurity, poor diet quality, and obesity among food pantry participants in Hartford, CT." J Nutr Educ Behav 45(2):

14. Clients of the charitable food assistance network said that they used several strategies to help feed their families on a small budget.
79% of clients choose cheap foods that fill them up, even though they know that they are unhealthy. (Hunger in America, 2014)

15. Research also shows that clients want healthier foods from food pantries; they report that it is very important to them to receive healthful foods.
Meat, poultry, fish, vegetables, fruit and dairy products are at the top of their preference list.
This makes sense given that most clients often can’t afford to buy these foods.
85% of clients ranked soda, candy, and snacks lowest among foods they prefer to receive at a pantry.

16. Nearly 50 million individuals rely on the charitable food network to help feed themselves and their families.
Making healthful foods available from pantries, soup kitchens, and shelters helps to make healthier choices easier for people with few resources.
The CEO of Feeding America, Bob Aiken, has said we have an obligation to ensure that a significant percentage of the food our clients receive through our network is healthful and nutrient rich, and that providing such foods to our clients is the 'new frontier' of food banking.
Copyright © 2014 The Regents of the University of California, All Rights Reserved
Created by Michelle Ross, Elizabeth Campbell, Karen Webb & Laura Vollmer Atkins Center for Weight and Health at UC Berkeley
Photo credit: Alameda County Community Food Bank

17. You may think that folks use food pantries only occasionally, and that the foods they receive are insignificant in the overall scheme of things, and couldn’t possibly have any influence on their usual diets and health.
However, in the most recent study conducted by Feeding America, the majority of pantry clients receive charitable food assistance every month.
Pantries are now an integral source of food for many low-income households.
Copyright © 2014 The Regents of the University of California, All Rights Reserved
Created by Michelle Ross, Elizabeth Campbell, Karen Webb & Laura Vollmer Atkins Center for Weight and Health at UC Berkeley
Photo credit: Alameda County Community Food Bank

18. Here’s a summary of good reasons for focusing giving out nutritious foods makes sense:
Diet related diseases affect many Americans.
These diseases affect low-income households more than others.
Low-income households have trouble affording foods for a healthful diet.
They often become clients of food banks and food pantries.
Clients consistently rely on charitable foods to supplement their household supplies- not just occasionally when they get into difficulty
So, the nutritional quality of the foods provided to them, does matter.
And a nutrition policy is a good place to start. 

19. We hope we’ve convinced you why a food bank nutrition policy makes sense for client health. But it’s not only good for clients, it’s also a good business decision for the food bank.
Some food banks have questioned the value of bothering with a nutrition policy if they already have practices that support nutrition, such as bringing in more produce. That’s an excellent start, but here are some of the added benefits for the food bank to have a nutrition policy:
It says to the world that this food bank has an organizational commitment to client health
It demonstrates good corporate citizenship and models responsible behavior by providing healthy food to community members in need.
It gives food bank staff a clear written guide to making consistent decisions about food inventory.
And it provides an official tool for communicating with donors, pantries and other local agencies, and stakeholders.

20. Experience shows that a policy is much more likely to be implemented if all the people affected by it are consulted and involved in its development.
We’re asking for your support and involvement in the development of a nutrition policy at this food bank, starting with the convening of a working group to draft the policy.