| Program | Description | State Administrative Agency | FY 04 Population Served | FY 04 Federal Dollars Spent |
| Food Stamps | Enables low-income families to purchase nutritious food. | Department of Human Services | 23,854,000 individuals | $27.2 Billion |
| National School Lunch Program | Provides low-cost or free nutritious lunch to children in school. | Department of Education | 28,957,000 children | $7.6 Billion (includes commodities) |
| Special Supplemental Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC)
Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program (FMNP)
* Note: FMNP operates in only 36 states. | Provides nutritious food, nutrition education, and referrals to health care to low-income, women, infants, and children up to age 5 who are at nutritional risk. Provides vouchers for WIC recipients to redeem at participating Farmers’ Markets | Department of Health Department of Human Services Department of Health Department of Agriculture | 7,904,000 women, infants and children | $4.9 Billion (includes food costs, nutrition services, administrative costs, and the Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program) |
| Child and Adult Care Food Program | Provides nutritious meals to children and elderly individuals in day-care settings. | Department of Education Department of Health | 3,005,000 children and adults | $2 Billion |
| National School Breakfast Program | Provides low-cost or free nutritious breakfast to children in school. | Department of Education | 8,898,000 children | $1.7 Billion (cash payments only, does not include commodities) |
| Summer Food Service Program | Provides free meals and snacks to children through age 18 when school is not in session. | Department of Education | 117,100,000 meals served Individuals served not calculated. | $262 Million |
| Senior Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program (SFMNP) * Note: SFMNP operates in only 41 states. | Provides low-income seniors with coupons that can be exchanged for eligible foods at farmers’ markets, roadside stands, and community supported agriculture programs | Department of Human Services Department of Agriculture Department of Aging Department of Health | 800,000 seniors (FY 03 participation number, FY04 participation number not yet released) | $16.7 Million (Congress appropriated $15 Million per year for FY02 – FY07) |
| Special Milk Program | Provides milk to children in schools and childcare institutions not participating in other child nutrition programs. | Department of Education | 7,200 schools or childcare institutions Individuals served not calculated. | $14 Million |
| Commodity Distribution Programs | | | | |
| The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) | Makes commodity food available to State agencies, which in turn distribute the food to non-profit community agencies which assist low-income persons. | Department of Human Services Department of Education Department of Agriculture | 533 Million Pounds Distributed Individuals served not calculated. | $417 Million |
| Commodity Supplemental Food Assistance Program (CSFP) *Note: CSFP operates in only 33 states. | Makes commodity food available to State agencies, which in turn distribute the food to non-profit community agencies to help supplement the diets of low-income pregnant and new mothers, infants, children up to age six, and elderly. | Department of Human Services Department of Education Department of Health Department of Agriculture | 522,000 individuals | $145 Million |
| Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR) | Provides commodity foods to low-income households, including the elderly, living on Indian reservations and to Native American families residing near reservations. | Individual Tribal Authorities | 104,000 individuals | $78 Million |