Areas Needing Improvement in the Adult Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program

GAO made a limited assessment of the Adult Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP). In April 1980, GAO testified before the subcommittee on overall program operations and on program activities. EFNEP has the potential for improving and maintaining people's health through better diets and for saving money through knowledgeable food purchases. Ignorance about nutrition is not limited to those at certain income levels but spans all socioeconomic levels and cultures. The need to combat this ignorance is critical at the lowest income levels because the poor can least afford food waste and are more likely to have health problems. The purpose of EFNEP is to improve the diets of low-income families through guidance on diet and food buying, care, and preparation. The guidance is provided mainly through paraprofessional program aides from the target areas. Fewer program aides have been employed and fewer homemakers have been instructed because inflation has eroded the purchasing power of EFNEP funds.