Food banks brace for crisis ahead of SNAP benefits suspension
NEW HANOVER, NC (WWAY) — “We keep having another worst-case scenario,” says Amy Beros.
Amy Beros is the President and CEO of the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina.
As colleagues and volunteers worked on meals that will be offered at pop-up food markets in surrounding counties, she’s worried about catching up to the quickly growing demand for people relying on SNAP.
“We’re in one right now where we see these benefits dropping in just a few days for families who have no way to prepare for that,” said Beros.
SNAP is the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and the USDA says starting November 1st, the government won’t issue SNAP benefits.
As a replacement, citizens are seeking extra help from places like the food banks.
While growing demand is one thing, the “supply” of money is another.
The government has cut food bank funding, limiting the amount of food they can purchase.
This is a double whammy for Vice President of Food Bank of Eastern and Central North Carolina, Jason Kanawati Stefany, who fears cuts in SNAP funding are hitting home.
“In the Cape Fear region alone, we have over 65,000 people. That’s children, seniors, people with disabilities, veterans, who depend on SNAP grocery support to keep food on the table. So, when those benefits are not issued, you can imagine how devastating that’s going to be for families throughout the region,” said Kanawati Stefany.
With a surplus of people needing to visit the food bank, and a decrease in stock, Beros says they are taking extra steps to try to stay ahead of the struggles to come.
“We are accessing reserves to increase food purchase and get more food out into our partners across the state to be able to meet this increase demand, and we are also doing, because in addition to the SNAP cuts, our federal workers are not receiving paychecks right now, we’re also doing direct distributions for federal employees who may have never had to access food assistance before.”
