Helping WIC Families Access Healthier Fresher and more Nutritious Foods Options
Feeding Future Generations
Bambino’s Baby Food is a mission driven company, created in order to encourage a healthier future for children, their families, and communities through both our nutritious and organic baby food and the processes involved in creating and making our products available to all. We want to inspire a movement to better all children’s health and empower healthier and stronger communities.
According to the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) supplemental nutrition programs website, WIC aims to safeguard the health of low-income women, infants, and children up to age 5 who are at nutrition risk by providing nutritious foods to supplement diets, information on healthy eating, and referrals to health care. This program under the USDA supplies nutrition to more than 51% of US babies. In Alaska, 5,860 of the 9,300
(63%) of all babies born this year will receive assistance from WIC. Financially burdened parents nationwide rely on WIC for assistance in feeding their children and providing them with the nutrition necessary during the critical first few years of development.
Currently WIC prohibits combinations of proteins, grains, and vegetables; organic ingredients; fresh-frozen goods; and packaging offering multiple servings. Bambino’s is advocating for WIC to allow healthier food combinations and environmentally conscious product production and delivery.
A serious issue for Alaskans where more than 97% of all consumed goods are brought up by barge yields a major food security and sovereignty concern. All baby food and baby formula in Alaska for WIC recipients is brought up from the Lower 48. There are no locally produced food approved. Should any delays, recalls, or shortages occur as they have in the past, there is no local backup for resupply. This leaves our families in a precarious position during possible food or supply emergencies. Not only are Bambino’s ingredients sourced in Alaska, but they are also prepared and packaged in Anchorage offering the most nutritious wholesome fresh option.
I started Bambino’s Baby Food with the vision of creating a healthier community and environment, but also to inspire change in a stagnant system. To encourage transformation and inclusivity. For almost a decade I have been advocating both at State and Federal levels to be more inclusive in their WIC options. This will in return reduce food allergies and all childhood obesity related health issues while reducing food and package waste.
We want all children to have equality of health and wellness and what they eat the first three years of life affects their lifetime health. It’s not just about Bambino’s Baby Food being allowed on WIC it’s about offering parents more options to help children grow healthy and strong.
This issue is one that needs to be addressed at both the state level and the federal level. The State of Alaska has jurisdiction over USDA regulations could add Bambino’s Baby Food to the list of WIC-eligible foods for Alaskans. At the federal level, changes can be made to update WIC regulations across the US.
If you would like to join our mission to create a more inclusive and equitable system, here’s how you can help us.
We are looking for both individuals and entities to compose letters of support advocating for the following changes to WIC regulations:
- allow organic ingredients in baby food
- allow fresh-frozen foods
- permit multiple servings in the same packaging
- permit combinations of protein, grains, and vegetables
I am also available to present to entities or organizations about medical and nutritional research regarding infant nutrition, WIC, and, food security.
Letters of support can be emailed to us at infant@bambinosbabyfood.com. We would also appreciate any correspondence that you send to the Governor and/or the Congressional Delegation being copied and pasted to us in an email.
If you would like to support this issue further, you can write Governor Mike Dunleavy with your support to add Bambino’s to WIC-eligible foods and to ensure food sovereignty and security for his constituents. You can contact him at https://aws.state.ak.us/CrmForms/Home/Feedback.
Another way to help would be to send letters of support for amending WIC regulations to the Alaska Congressional Delegation at:
Senator Lisa Murkowski
https://www.murkowski.senate.gov/contact/email
Senator Dan Sullivan
https://www.sullivan.senate.gov/contact/email
Representative Mary Peltola
https://peltola.house.gov/forms/writeyourrep
With much love and respect,
Zoi Maroudas
Founder CEO, Bambino’s Baby Food, Medical Nutritionist