The West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR), Bureau for Public Health today announced new foods available for purchase with the Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC). The approved food list was updated to better meet the nutritional needs of WIC participants, offer more varieties of food, and encourage healthier eating habits.
“The West Virginia WIC Program finalized changes to the WIC food packages based on the latest nutrition science,” explained Dr. Rahul Gupta, State Health Officer and Commissioner of DHHR’s Bureau for Public Health. “These programmatic updates allow the WIC program to better meet diverse nutritional needs of mothers and their young children.”
The updates to the WIC approved food list include the additions of yogurt, canned and frozen fruits and vegetables, whole wheat pasta and corn tortillas. A wider variety of whole wheat tortillas, whole grain rice and organic infant foods were also added to accommodate participant preference. Newly approved package sizes for cheese, juice, breads and buns will increase variety in these WIC food categories. Lastly, the amount of the cash value benefit for the purchase of fruits and vegetables increased for children from $8 per month to $9.
“The WIC approved Shopping Guide outlines the food items available for purchase with WIC benefits,” said Denise Ferris, West Virginia WIC Director. “WIC participants and retailers have been pleased with the wider range of choices available for purchase with WIC benefits.”
For more information regarding WIC benefits and the new food list, please visit
dhhr.wv.gov/wic.