The efforts to support breastfeeding in Missouri have garnered national attention this week as the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) recognized ten local WIC agencies for their exemplary breastfeeding peer support programs. Randolph County WIC stood out, receiving the Premiere WIC Breastfeeding Award of Excellence, a testament to their robust efforts in promoting breastfeeding and boosting the fully breastfeeding rates amongst mothers and infants. Only 56 WIC local agencies across the country managed to achieve this premiere status in 2025, as noted in a report by MODHSS.
During the USDA's National WIC Breastfeeding Week, celebrated each year from August 1-7, nine other Missouri agencies were decorated with the 2025 Gold WIC Breastfeeding Award of Excellence for their support to breastfeeding WIC mothers. These awards recognize local agencies that make an extra effort to create a supportive environment for mothers, and apparently to successfully increase the breastfeeding initiation and duration rates among WIC participants. The honored agencies include Barton County, Butler County, Callaway County, Columbia/Boone County, Jefferson-Franklin Community Action Corporation, Laclede County, Saline County, Springfield-Greene County, and Webster County WIC.
According to a bulletin released by the MODHSS, Missouri WIC has seen tangible results: from July 2024 to June 2025, 75.2 percent of Missouri WIC moms initiated breastfeeding, marking an increase from previous years. Meanwhile, the duration rate climbed to a historic high with 17.5 percent of mothers breastfeeding up to their baby's first year. These numbers reflect the enhanced efforts made by local agencies in providing access to breastfeeding peer counselors and lactation consultants.
Lisa Schlientz, the state breastfeeding coordinator for DHSS and WIC, expressed her pride in the agencies’ work: "The Missouri WIC program fully supports all mothers who would like to breastfeed," she said. "We are proud of the extra efforts made by these ten agencies to provide a full range of breastfeeding services to WIC participants who choose breastfeeding to provide a healthy start for their baby. This support empowers our Missouri moms and enables them to be successful," she told MODHSS.
The awarded agencies are required to run a peer counseling program for over a year and meet all core components of the WIC Breastfeeding Model for Peer Counseling. Services include hiring counselors from within WIC's target population and providing support outside regular clinic hours. The Missouri WIC website now features a map of these agencies, which offer enhanced services and cover 87 percent of the pregnant and breastfeeding women in the program statewide.
