LA VA Food Security Committee helps Veterans access healthy food

Greater Los Angeles VA established a multi-disciplinary Food Security Committee in October 2023 to help generate a plan to reduce the number of Veterans struggling to access enough healthy food. The departments meet monthly in response to this growing nutrition-related health crisis.

The team works to help increase access to resources for local Veterans, along with supporting unhoused Veterans expected to move into the minimum of 1,200 units of housing on campus.

The Department of Agriculture defines “food insecurity” as a lack of consistent access to enough food for an active, healthy life. Food security impacts a broad scope of health-related issues, such as type 2 diabetes, obesity, hypertension, mental health and certain cancers, according to the Food Security Office.

Greater LA VA’s commitment to the welfare of Veterans

“This initiative is not only a demonstration of Greater LA VA’s commitment to the welfare of our Veterans but is also an excellent example of the positive impact that can be achieved when individuals and organizations come together with a shared goal,” said Jason Melton, executive officer, VA Food Security Office. “The workgroup’s multi-disciplined approach will undoubtedly lead to tangible and meaningful changes in the lives of Veterans.”

In 2023, 6.4% of Veterans screened at Greater LA VA were positive for food insecurity compared to 2% nationally. The rates are five times higher for unhoused Veterans, according to data from the Food Insecurity Summary Dashboard.

“We are hoping to increase our screening rates in order to better serve our Veterans in their personalized nutrition care,” said Shari Kushins-Moore, outpatient nutrition specialty programs manager. “As Veterans are better identified, our dietitians are able to customize their nutrition care in order to help them shop and cook on a budget, track seasonality of produce to reduce cost and utilize healthy and nutritious foods more aligned with their specific health care needs.”

“It’s important to recognize that these basic needs are critically important and, like housing, if we are not addressing these basic needs, then it’s hard to address any other needs, whether it’s medical or mental health. Of course, we are still going to do that, but it’s important to acknowledge and address this barrier,” said Dr. Peter Capone-Newton, Whole Health physician.

Aligned with White House initiatives on hunger, health and nutrition

Through the VA Food Security Office and the efforts of local VA facilities, VA is uniquely positioned to support the national efforts to end hunger in the U.S. VA’s Food Security Office and the Nutrition and Food Services Office lead efforts aligned with the White House’s strategic initiatives shared at the White House Conference on Hunger, Health and Nutrition.

The VA Food Security Office supports VA facilities in their efforts to identify food insecurity and connect Veterans to local resources. This multi-disciplinary team combines nutrition, social work and nursing clinical fields with a focus on solving the root causes of food insecurity among Veterans.

Veterans in or near Greater Los Angeles VA can call 877-251-7295 to find out about services such as Healthy Teaching Kitchen classes related to food insecurity or to make an appointment.

All VA health care facilities can provide access to resources to help Veterans facing food insecurity, and Veterans are encouraged to reach out to their local VA care teams to learn more about the services available in their community.