Physical Activity & Nutrition Program

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program – Education (SNAP-Ed) s a program funded by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) to promote healthy eating and healthy lifestyles among low-income populations. SNAP was formerly called the Food Stamp Program.

The SNAP-Ed program supports healthy eating and physical activity in a wide range of settings and communities where people eat, live, work, learn, shop, and play. The program uses a mix of methods and comprehensive, multi-level public health approaches.

The SNAP-Ed goal is: “To improve the likelihood that persons eligible for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), or other people with low income, will make healthy food choices within a limited budget and choose physically active lifestyles consistent with the current Dietary Guidelines for Americans and the USDA food guidance.

In Hawai‛i, the program has two components: direct nutrition education, (led by our partners at the University of Hawai‛i Cooperative Extension Services), and the support of policy, systems, and environmental (PSE) changes—shifts that make healthy lifestyles easier where people eat, live, work, learn, shop and play. These two components must impact communities, schools, and families who meet income eligibility standards for SNAP-Ed, which vary depending on the setting.

DOH Program Overview

DOH’s PolicyMap is an online mapping tool with a variety of data sources around healthy food access and built environment (bike/pedestrian/multi-modal transportation) that can be used to create an in-depth, visually-rich local snapshot. For example, this mapping tool could be used to show farmers markets that accept EBT.

Please visit PolicyMap’s tutorial page for a complete walk through of all features and functions on PolicyMap.

We understand that the solutions to food insecurity and poor health need to come from within the communities most impacted by them. That is why DOH SNAP-Ed is focused on community leadership development in 4 Systems:

1. Early Care and Education (ECE): We work with childcare facilities and administrators to promote the Hawai‛i ECE Wellness Guidelines and offer training and technical assistance in curricula such as Farm to Keiki. Learn more about ECE by visiting the website, here.
2. Schools (K-12): Working in close partnership with the DOH School Health program, SNAP-Ed supports the implementation of the HIDOE School Wellness Policy. We also support farm to school initiatives through developing partnerships such as the Hawai‛i Farm to School Hui.
3. Built environment: In order to ensure healthy food access for all, regardless of housing or transportation access, we have partnered with the DOH Built Environment program to work on issues such as complete streets, active transportation, housing, and urban agriculture.
4. Community Food Access:

• • SNAP retail: We know that the places where low-income residents shop for food don’t always have healthy items available. That’s why we support EBT (Electronic Benefits Transfer) programs at farmers’ markets, as well as nutrition incentive programs (where SNAP users get an extra dollar for each dollar they spend on fruits and vegetables, doubling their purchasing power)
  • Emergency food relief: SNAP-Ed supports building leadership within the state’s food banks and food pantries to ensure that food bank clients have access to healthy food and other programs and services that help increase self-sufficiency.
  • Food Access Capacity Building Project: Low income families encounter various challenges in accessing healthy foods, including cost, availability, preparation time, and cooking skills. As a result of COVID-19, Hawai‘i experienced a dramatic economic transition that affected Hawai‘i’s low-income and food insecure populations resulting in a 55% increase in households receiving SNAP. A recent report found, nearly 1 in 3 households in Hawai‘i experienced food insecurity in 2023, and 37% of all households felt anxious about running out of food, regardless of food security status. By leveraging community centers, churches, healthcare facilities , and farms, we can develop systems that make healthy food more affordable, help residents know where their food comes from, instill basic food skills, and improve access, ultimately enhancing the eating behaviors of entire communities.
  • Food Access Capacity Building Project: The DOH SNAP-Ed program has provided funding to establish Food Access Coordinator (FAC) positions in each county as part of the Food Access Capacity Building Project and to support the Hawai‘i Food Access Coalitions. As of 2024, there are five FACs − one in each county and an additional coordinator in Waianae, Oahu.The FACs have three main responsibilities:
    o Developing the network of food system stakeholders.
    o Building a shared understanding of each county’s food systems.
    o Improving access to locally produced foods for residents facing food insecurity.Following the collective impact model, Hawai‘i’s food access stakeholders meet regularly to implement policy, system, and environmental (PSE) changes that support healthy food access. The FACs provide:
    o Support and technical assistant (TA)
    o Capacity building
    o Resource development
    o Training for PSE work
    o Direct education opportunities in Hawaii’s low-income communities

Online Mapping Tool
DOH SNAP-Ed’s PolicyMap is an online mapping tool with a variety of data sources around healthy food access (e.g. farmers market accepting EBT, DA BUX retailors) and built environment projects (e.g. bike lane/pedestrian/multi-modal transportation). This map can be used to create an in-depth, visually-rich local snapshot. Please visit PolicyMap’s tutorial page for a complete walk through of all features and functions on PolicyMap.

Reports

• Outcome Harvesting Evaluation Study
  • Maui County Food Access Coordinator Position (2023)
  • Hawaii County Food Access Coordinator Position (2021)
• Good Food For All: Advancing Healthy Equity Through Hawai‘i’s Food System (2018)

In accordance with federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, this institution is prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex (including gender identity and sexual orientation), religious creed, disability, age, political beliefs, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity.

Program information may be made available in languages other than English. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication to obtain program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language), should contact the agency (state or local) where they applied for benefits. Individuals who are deaf, hard of hearing or have speech disabilities may contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.

To file a program discrimination complaint, a Complainant should complete a Form AD-3027, USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form which can be obtained online at: https://www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/ad-3027.pdf, from any USDA office, by calling (833) 620-1071, or by writing a letter addressed to USDA. The letter must contain the Complainant’s name, address, telephone number, and a written description of the alleged discriminatory action in sufficient detail to inform the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights (ASCR) about the nature and date of an alleged civil rights violation. The completed AD-3027 form or letter must be submitted to:

1. Mail:
   Food and Nutrition Service, USDA
   1320 Braddock Place, Room 334
   Alexandria, VA 22314; or
2. Fax:
   (833) 256-1665 or (202) 690-7442; or
3. Email:
   [email protected]

This institution is an equal opportunity provider.