The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors will help launch activities for the May 2017 “CalFresh Awareness Month.” This is a public awareness campaign coordinated by the Department of Public Social Services and its 40-plus community-based partner organizations to increase access to food assistance for low-income families and promote healthier food choices in the county.
The month-long campaign highlights the critical role that CalFresh, the federally-funded supplemental food benefit, plays in eliminating the threat of “food insecurity,” or the lack of reliable access to a sufficient quantity of affordable, nutritious food. The Department of Public Health has described food insecurity as a “major public health issue that has reached crisis proportions in L.A. County.” Studies also suggest that household hunger negatively impacts the intellectual, physical and emotional development of children, putting them at greater risks for obesity, diabetes and other diseases.
Unfortunately, many families experiencing food insecurity in L.A. County are unaware that they may qualify for CalFresh.
Additional events to publicize the effort will take place at various locations throughout the county, including a Wednesday, May 3 @ 9 a.m. CalFresh Awareness Month Community kick-off event and Resource Fair at the Hubert Humphrey Comprehensive Health Center in South L.A. On Saturday, May 6 @ 9 a.m., the collaboration will join federal, state, and local officials to host a seven-mile community bike ride and resource fair at Clara Park in the City of Cudahy.
