Iowa – Gov. Kim Reynolds says she has not withdrawn from a federal program to provide food to needy Iowa children next summer; she is simply waiting to see if the U.S. Department of Agriculture will allow her to use the money to set up a new system to distribute the food in Iowa.

Reynolds said. Iowa was one of 13 states that did not participate in the USDA program this summer, which provided families with an additional $140 in food money for each child who qualifies for a free or reduced-price lunch at school. Reynolds has devised a plan to distribute the $29 million in grants by having the state purchase and package the food.

The governor says the packaged food will be distributed by the state’s 1,200 food banks and food pantries, as well as the 500 facilities across the state – mostly schools – that provided summer meals this summer. Critics say that by issuing electronic benefit cards, Iowa parents can meet their family’s nutritional needs and avoid foods their children are allergic to. Reynolds says the focus of her alternative is on healthy eating.

Reynolds made the comments during a press conference Thursday, but did not say whether she will pull out of the summer feeding program next year if the USDA does not fund her food box alternative. The director of the governor’s Department of Health and Human Services says she has had some productive conversations with a senior USDA official about the governor’s request for a waiver.