When communities prepare for emergencies, the needs of infants and young children are too often an afterthought. Yet during hurricanes, floods, wildfires, and extended power outages, feeding a baby safely can become one of the hardest things a family faces. Planning ahead — before disaster strikes — is what keeps the youngest residents safe.
That’s why the SAFE Team developed the Infant and Young Child Feeding in Emergencies (IYCF-E) County Policy Adoption Toolkit — a practical guide to help counties write infant and young child feeding into their emergency plans before disaster strikes. It’s built for the people who make local preparedness happen: county governments, health departments, emergency managers, and community partners.
Emergency preparedness isn’t only about supplies — it’s about coordinated systems of support. A clear, adopted policy helps a community respond quickly and consistently when every moment matters.
The toolkit helps communities:
- Include infant and young child feeding in emergency plans.
- Clarify roles and responsibilities before a disaster.
- Strengthen coordination across local partners.
- Support all families with evidence-based, family-centered care.
Every community can take steps to become more prepared and more resilient. By planning for infants and young children now, counties can protect families before, during, and after an emergency.
Read the full toolkit
Download & adapt it for your county
Read or print the toolkit: IYCF-E County Policy Adoption Toolkit (PDF)
Make it your own: we also offer an editable Word template your county can download and adapt into its own policy — so you can do more than read it, you can build from it. Download the Sample IYCF-E County Policy Template (Word document).