National WIC Association

Weekly WIC Policy Update

July 21, 2014

Legislative Update

The House and Senate are in session this week, but will not be working on the Agriculture Appropriations bill, which funds WIC. It is very unlikely that Congress will vote on the bill before the August recess. It is increasingly likely that WIC and other federal programs will be temporarily funded for at least a portion of FY 2015 (perhaps thru the mid-term elections) via yet another continuing resolution (CR).

Dietary Guidelines Update

On July 17-18th, the fourth meeting of the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee was held. All five of the subcommittees presented and led discussion on their literature findings regarding their specific topics followed by their recommendations. The most awaited and most controversial recommendation came from subcommittee five, Food Sustainability and Safety. This subcommittee concluded that a diet lower in animal-based foods and higher in plant-based foods has a lesser environmental impact and that Americans should have access to a more affordable, sustainable diet.