The Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program is a supplemental food and nutrition education program that serves financially eligible women, infants, and children under the age of five. Fathers, step-parents, foster parents, grandparents and guardians are also encouraged to apply for these benefits for any eligible children in the household.

The goal of the WIC program is to help keep pregnant and breastfeeding women, new moms, and kids under age five healthy. It provides:

• Personalized nutrition information and support
• Benefits to buy healthy food
• Tips for eating well to improve health
• Referrals for services that can benefit the whole family

The program also offers immunization screening and referral, breastfeeding support, and nutrition and health classes on a variety of topics, including meal planning, maintaining a healthy weight, picky eaters, caring for a new baby, shopping on a budget and more.

Infant Formula Recall Alert (February 17, 2022)

Abbott is initiating a proactive, voluntary recall of powder formulas, including Similac^®, Alimentum^® and EleCare^® manufactured in Sturgis, Mich., one of the company’s manufacturing facilities. The recall does not include any metabolic deficiency nutrition formulas. Read more about the recall and check lot numbers. If your formula is part of the recall, stop giving it to your infant. Consumers can return the affected cans to their local vendor, who should have a protocol in place for this recall.

If your infant is experiencing symptoms related to Cronobacter or Salmonella infection, such as poor feeding, irritability, temperature changes, jaundice, grunting breaths, abnormal movements, lethargy, rash, or blood in the urine or stool; contact your health care provider to report their symptoms and receive immediate care.

WIC does not recommend homemade infant formulas or offering cow’s milk before the age of one year. Please call your local WIC office or health care provider for alternative formulas appropriate for your baby.