WIC Authorization in King County Halal Stores: Benefits and Barriers

In 2014, OneAmerica began a collaborative partnership with Public Health – Seattle & King County in response to concerns raised by the Somali community relating to WIC vendor disqualification of several King County Halal grocery stores. Additionally, the 2016 WA State Department of Health (DOH) report, Opportunities to Improve WIC Services to Somali Women, suggested that Somali WIC clients face linguistic and cultural barriers when shopping with WIC checks. WIC vendor disqualification of Halal grocery stores in King County creates business development and economic concerns, as well as issues of health equity and food access.

There were four objectives for this project:

• Assess the barriers that Somali grocers face in achieving and maintaining WIC authorization.
• Assess Somali WIC clients’ desire for WIC authorization in Somali stores and food purchasing preferences.
• Assess the cultural and logistical barriers that WIC clients face when purchasing foods using WIC.
• Substantiate the findings of the 2016 Opportunities to Improve WIC Services to Somali Women DOH report.

Materials Available

• Poster

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Project Type(s): MPH Practicum

Author(s): Sarah Craven

Program(s): Master of Public Health

Year: 2016

Adviser(s):

• Anne Lund