Food and Food System Resources During COVID-19 Pandemic

The following resources are for individuals and families seeking food assistance during the COVID-19 pandemic. Guidance is also available for food assistance programs and food system stakeholders.

Children

• Food preparation and meal service for child care programs
• Meals while schools are closed:
  • Ensuring students have mealsexternal icon
  • Interactive map for finding meals for kidsexternal icon
  • State guidance on pandemic electronic benefits transfers (P-EBT) for student mealsexternal icon
• Women, Infants and Children (WIC) physical presence waiverexternal icon

Individual and Families

• Food finderexternal icon for free food assistance programs for children and families
• Healthy eating tips
• Start simpleexternal icon food planning with MyPlate
• Tips for grocery shopping
• Using the updated nutrition facts labelexternal icon
• Hunger hotline from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) for information on meal sites, food banks, and other services near you. Call 1-866-3-HUNGRY or 1-877-8-HAMBRE for Spanish. Hours are 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Eastern Time Monday through Friday.
• Hunger hotline text option. Text 97779 with question that contains a keyword such as “food” or “meals”. The automated response will include resources located near an address and/or zip code.
• Meals on Wheels for individuals with diminished mobility who are generally aged 60 and older, although age requirements can vary. Find a provider onlineexternal icon.

Food Assistance Programs

• Farmers to Familiesexternal icon food box program from USDA’s Agriculture Marketing Service
• USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service COVID-19 responseexternal icon
• Food distribution programs on Indian reservationsexternal icon
• Immigrant eligibilityexternal icon for public programs during COVID-19
• State flexibilities in The Emergency Food Assistance Programexternal icon (TEFAP)
• USDA Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) emergency allotmentsexternal icon guidance
• Sustaining nutritional needs for at-risk individualspdf iconexternal icon [PDF-370KB]
• State waivers in child nutrition programsexternal icon

Restaurant and Food Retail Venues

• Best practices and food safety reopening checklistexternal icon for food retail venues
• Best practicesexternal icon for retail food stores, restaurants, and food pick-up/delivery services
• Food safetyexternal icon and COVID-19
• Series of business practice documentsexternal icon for the food industry
• Tips for businesses and workplaces to plan, prepare, and respond
• Tool to assist restaurants and bars with (re)opening decisionspdf icon [PDF-159KB]
• What grocery and food retail workers need to know about COVID-19

Food Systems

• Cleaning and disinfecting public spaces, workplaces, businesses, schools, and homes
• COVID-19 confirmed positive or exposed workersexternal icon in food production, storage, or distribution operations regulated by the Food and Drug Administration
• Critical infrastructure workers who may have had exposure to a person with suspected or confirmed COVID-19
• Identifying critical infrastructure sectors and essential workersexternal icon, including food and agricultural workers
• Infection preventionpdf iconexternal icon [PDF-1.2MB] for agricultural employers and employees (California example)
• Guidance for manufacturing workers and employers
• Guidance for meat and poultry processors
• Protecting workersexternal icon from exposure and infection

Rural Areas

• Guidance for agriculture workers and employers
• Potential resources for seasonal farmworker housingpdf iconexternal icon[PDF-206KB]
• Rural guidepdf iconexternal icon [PDF-441KB] from the USDA
• Rural Health Information Hubexternal icon supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration of the US Department of Health and Human Services