Local Levers for Change

Bambino’s Baby Food founder Zoi Maroudas fills the retail freezer at the company’s production site in Anchorage

Food Entrepreneurs Can Strengthen Vital Nutrition Programs

“Hello, dear!”

Zoi Maroudas emerges from the bustling back of the Bambino’s Baby Food storefront with a warm smile. Stepping into the shop feels like an embrace, with the smell of fresh-baked bread wafting among shelves of handcrafted goods and vats of olive oil pressed from her own family’s farm in Greece.

Maroudas founded Bambino’s in 2012, influenced by her Alaska home and her Mediterranean roots. Every product—from their signature Sockeye Salmon Bisque to their allergen-friendly pea purée—carries her belief that babies deserve the very best start. Bambino’s is more than a business; it’s on a mission. Since those early beginnings, Maroudas has navigated the federal landscape to understand how she could list her products under federal nutrition programs like the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children—more commonly known as WIC. Maroudas is driven by the question: doesn’t every kid deserve the freshest, most nutritious foods?

Customers come and go, picking up orders and exchanging hugs. Maroudas moves effortlessly between greeting visitors and recounting her entrepreneurial path that became a decade plus-long crusade for child nutrition. Entrepreneurs and nutrition have been entwined since the dawn of market-based production. At their best, food entrepreneurs don’t just build businesses —they shape healthier communities. Examples abound of “foodpreneurs” making real change with economic value; reducing food waste by turning ugly produce into tasty treats, sourcing local to keep more dollars circulating at the community level, and creating products that are both tasty and nutritious.

Opportunity abounds to increase market access for these start-ups and small businesses. Federal nutrition programs could be a more significant player in small food entrepreneur success.

According to the Alaska SBDC, approximately 63 percent of dollars spent locally stays in Alaska, compared to just 22 percent when you purchase from an external business. 99 percent of Alaska businesses classify as “small.”

In Alaska, where high food costs and supply chain challenges add complexity to feeding the population, nutrition incentive programs like WIC are even more of a critical lifeline than they are in more connected regions. The Alaska WIC program, administered through the Division of Public Assistance, works with families across the state. When it comes to providing young families with a strong nutritional foundation, WIC has been a quiet but powerful force for over 50 years. Originally piloted in 1972 and permanently authorized in 1975, WIC was created to combat malnutrition among vulnerable populations. Today, it remains one of the most successful federal nutrition programs in the United States.

Food producers face serious hurdles to getting products approved for WIC: packaging; rules about ingredients; fresh, frozen, and shelfstable considerations. It can be a lot for someone to navigate, especially a budding business with low capacity for that level of bureaucratic detail.

WIC is just one of the USDA Food and Nutrition Service’s 16 core nutrition assistance programs. According to a USDA spokesperson, “WIC supports women and children at critical life stages—pregnancy, the postpartum, and breastfeeding periods, infancy, and early childhood… WIC offers a range of benefits designed to support the health and wellbeing of eligible participants. Participants receive nutritious foods, personalized guidance on healthy eating, one-on-one assistance from staff skilled in breastfeeding support, and referrals to other services. These services collectively aim to improve health outcomes.”

In 2023, over 43,000 Alaskans participated in WIC.

The program has adapted to modern needs by offering electronic benefits (eWIC cards) instead of paper vouchers, making it easier for participants to shop. WIC provides nutrition education, referrals to health and social services, and specific healthy foods to eligible pregnant and postpartum women, breastfeeding mothers, infants, and children up to their fifth birthday. Rather than acting as a full grocery benefit, WIC is designed to supplement diets, helping to ensure key nutrients are available during critical stages of development. “Including (more varied WIC-approved) options would mean children eat a balanced-based diet essentially needed for optimal immune, muscle, bone, and neural development along with training healthy eating habits,” says Maroudas.

Across Alaska and the United States, there is a growing movement to support regional food systems and better link food producers and markets. While initiatives like WIC already offer important opportunities to connect families with fresh produce, advocates see a much bigger opportunity, one where local food systems and nutrition programs grow together to better sustain people and bolster local economies.

A USDA spokesperson shared that in 2024, approximately $4.9 billion in WIC benefits were used at authorized retailers.

Recognizing the limited local value-added food options within WIC, Maroudas collaborated with Congressman Don Young for years and after making it through COVID slow-downs, Young introduced the INFANT Act (HR 784) to Congress in 2021. This legislation aimed to expand WIC-approved foods to include more fresh, frozen, and organic options, with varied packaging sizes, giving families healthier choices. That bill didn’t make it into law and ultimately stalled out due to the passing of the late Congressman. Since then there hasn’t been much progress, despite Maroudas garnering support from a broad spectrum —allergists, pediatricians, tribal entities, national organizations like the Alzheimer’s Association, and Alaska public officials at the state and federal levels. In 2019 she even ran a successful signature campaign, gathering 5,000 sign-ons composed of parents, caregivers, and a member of Congress.

WIC is a program with multiple opportunities for change. Bambino’s has also urged Alaska’s state authorities to approve more value-added products for WIC, emphasizing the importance of local entrepreneurs’ role in food security. At the heart of this opportunity are food entrepreneurs: farmers, growers, fishers, ranchers, and local makers.

Currently, eligible WIC participants in Alaska receive an additional $30 in benefits annually to spend specifically at local farmers markets, farm stands, or directly with farmers as part of the WIC Farmers Market Nutrition Program (FMNP). This funding helps small farmers build steady, reliable revenue streams during their growing season. As more farmers, ranchers, and specialty food makers become authorized WIC vendors, it diversifies their markets beyond traditional buyers and taps into federal dollars that might otherwise leave the local economy.

$23,000 in WIC Farmers Market Nutrition Vouchers were redeemed in 2023.

Moreover, this direct farm-to-family model helps food entrepreneurs grow their businesses sustainably. When families come to know and trust their local producers through programs like WIC, they are more likely to return as customers who make purchases outside of the program too, creating loyal, lasting relationships that strengthen the local food economy.

When WIC participants interact with farmers, they often learn directly about how food is grown, how to store and prepare fresh produce, and how to enjoy seasonal eating. These experiences deepen participants’ food literacy and connect them more closely to where their food comes from. Finally, supporting local food systems through WIC builds resilience throughout our food web. By strengthening Alaska’s own food production capacity, communities become less vulnerable to national supply chain disruptions that have become all too common in recent years due to natural disasters and the global pandemic.

Maroudas’ passion is apparent when she speaks about access to healthy food for all Alaskan children.

Speaking of disruptions… WIC is a federal program…

While WIC has long enjoyed strong bipartisan support, it is not immune to the pressures of federal budget negotiations. If future budget cuts reduce funding for WIC, the effects could ripple through families, communities, and local food systems—especially in Alaska, where food insecurity rates are already high.

1 in 8 Alaskans and 1 in 6 Alaskan kids experience hunger.

WIC participants are more likely to have a more nutritious diet, better health, and improved pregnancy outcomes than non-WIC participant families. USDA sets the requirements for each WIC package, and WIC state agencies determine the WIC-eligible foods to include within their program that meet minimum Federal WIC requirements. Sound onerous? Yes. Impossible? No, and Maroudas remains optimistic that more value-added and local foods can be offered through federal nutrition programs— despite her having submitted a vendor application in spring 2024 with no word either way yet.

“On the positive note—can this be done? Yes, it can be done…The mission is, healthy access for all families.” —Zoi Maroudas

Program, slowing the flow of federal dollars into local economies and reducing families’ access to fresh foods. Advocates emphasize that protecting WIC funding is crucial to safeguarding the health and future of America’s youngest generation—and the communities that support them.

Weighing in on this topic, the USDA spokesperson shared that they are “committed to creating new opportunities to connect America’s farmers to nutrition assistance programs and infusing each nutrition program with new energy and vision.”

According to Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, “Gone are the days of the status quo; today starts a new chapter for the Department, states, territories, tribal communities, and each who render or receive nutrition programs. We have a historic opportunity to improve nutrition programs to better serve individuals who need additional support.”

Alaska’s unique geography, small scale of agriculture, and strong local food traditions position it well to lead by example. By integrating more local foods, both fresh and value-added, into WIC, the state has a chance to build healthier families, stronger rural economies, and a food system that is truly a homegrown network of choice. As policymakers and program administrators look to the future, integrating more local food entrepreneurs into WIC and other nutrition programs could be a win-win: healthier families, thriving small businesses, and stronger, more self-reliant communities.

Disclosure: Bambino’s Baby Food is a financial supporter of Edible Alaska. Our supporters do not shape our coverage.