The Defense Department released an online toolkit to help military leaders ensure warfighters and their families – particularly junior enlisted members and single-earner households – have access to affordable, nutritious food.
The Nutrition Readiness Toolkit helps military leaders champion commissary shopping, eating at installation dining facilities and packing healthy meals from home as lunch options. The toolkit can be downloaded from the Support for Food, Finances and Housing page on Military OneSource.
Developed with input from nutrition professionals, military family service providers and those who lead uniformed personnel, the toolkit helps warfighters and their families prioritize healthy eating, strengthen food security and optimize performance through nutrition. It is part of broader department-wide efforts to enhance nutrition readiness across the force, and to improve service members’ access to affordable, nutritious food to ensure optimal warfighter performance.
“Nutrition readiness is vital for the wellness and quality of life of our warfighters and their families. It’s important to sustaining a strong and lethal force,” said William Fitzhugh, acting principal deputy of Manpower and Reserve Affairs. “This toolkit is among a slate of initiatives the Department recently introduced to bolster nutrition readiness across the military community, and to equip providers and leaders with practical tools that enhance warfighter lethality and family well-being.”
Key features of the Nutrition Readiness Toolkit include:
*Conversation starters for military leaders to use when discussing optimal warfighter nutrition.
*Fact sheets covering:
*Healthy eating on a budget
*Financial management
*Financial benefits for service members
*A customizable presentation for unit leaders to brief service members about proper nutrition and resources that support access to healthy, affordable foods.
Other actions the Defense Department has taken to improve warfighters’ physical access to affordable, nutritious food, and improve economic security include lowering prices at military grocery stores. Military commissaries offer significant savings of approximately 25% compared to civilian stores, potentially saving authorized patrons thousands of dollars annually.
In 2025, military members received a 4.5% basic pay raise effective Jan.1. Junior enlisted personnel in pay grades E-1 through E-4 received an additional 10% increase on April 1 (E-5s with fewer than 10 years of service received smaller April 1 increases), resulting in a total pay boost of 15% in 2025.
Additionally, the Defense Department is actively addressing the high unemployment rate among military spouses, currently around 20%, through key support programs such as the Military Spouse Employment Partnership, Spouse Education and Career Opportunities program, and the My Career Advancement Account Scholarship program.
The Defense Department is also promoting awareness of health and wellness coaching, as well as financial management resources available through Military OneSource.
“The department’s investments in quality of life programs like these help reduce military family members’ stress, strengthen their resilience and help our warfighters optimize performance on and off the battlefield,” said Stephen B. Simmons, deputy assistant secretary of defense for Military Community and Family Policy. “By continuously improving ways to provide our warfighters and their families with easy access to resources to meet their needs, including unique nutritional needs, we demonstrate our commitment to investing in a stronger force and healthier military families.”
Military leaders are encouraged to use the toolkit to communicate with their personnel. For more information about the Defense Department’s nutrition readiness and food access efforts, visit the Food Security Resources and Support Programs MilLife Guide.
About Military OneSource
Military OneSource is a DOD-funded program that is both a call center and a website providing comprehensive information, resources and assistance on every aspect of military life. Service members and the families of active duty, National Guard and reserve (regardless of activation status), Coast Guard members when activated for the Navy, DOD expeditionary civilians and survivors are eligible for Military OneSource services, which are available worldwide 24 hours a day, seven days a week, free to the user.
About Military Community and Family Policy
Military Community and Family Policy is directly responsible for establishing and overseeing quality of life policies and programs that help our service members, their families and survivors be well and mission ready. Military OneSource is the gateway to programs and services that support the everyday needs of the 5.2 million service members and immediate family members of the military community. These DOD services can be accessed 24/7/365 around the world.
| Date Taken: | 06.17.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 06.17.2025 15:13 |
| Story ID: | 500876 |
| Location: | ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA, US |
| Web Views: | 32 |
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This work, Fueling the Fight: DOD Launches Military Leaders’ Nutrition Readiness Toolkit, by T'Jae Ellis, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
