Articles Tagged: Food insecurity

The crises at the heart of the government shutdown fight in Washington were coming to a head Saturday.

Iowa anti-hunger advocates said rulings by two federal judges that order the Trump administration to fund the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program using contingency funds during the government shutdown offer some hope, but not immediate relief to the hundreds of thousands of Iowans who rely on the federal food aid program.

Two federal judges ruled nearly simultaneously on Friday that President Donald Trump’s administration must to continue to fund SNAP, the nation’s biggest food aid program, using contingency funds during the government shutdown. It wasn’t immediately clear how quickly the debit cards that beneficiaries use to buy groceries could be reloaded.

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Plan benefits that help thousands of Iowans buy food each month will not be distributed Saturday if the federal government is still shut down. As the country prepares for the impact of that pause, Iowans are looking for ways to help people in need. Here’s what food banks said is the most helpful.

A surge in student hunger — brought on by the suspension of a federal food assistance program beginning Saturday — will manifest as crisis in classrooms, decreased academic performance and increased behavioral challenges, Iowa school leaders say.

Gov. Kim Reynolds on Thursday announced plans to deploy the Iowa National Guard, match $1 million in food bank donations and recruit volunteers to help feed families if federal SNAP benefits stop Nov. 1 amid the federal government shutdown.

Republican Iowa U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks has introduced legislation to fund federal food assistance that is scheduled to dry up next month if the government shutdown continues.

Gov. Kim Reynolds has ordered Iowa HHS to work with food banks as federal officials warn that SNAP benefits may not go out Nov. 1. Food pantries say they’re already seeing higher demand and they’re bracing for a surge if payments are disrupted.

The Iowa Department of Health and Human Services is warning Iowans who receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits that November funds may not be issued onto SNAP cards as the federal government shutdown approaches its third week with no end in sight.

Soft drinks, candy, gum and many other foods — most of which are generally deemed to be unhealthy — will be ineligible for purchase with SNAP benefits starting Jan. 1.

The federal government shutdown hasn’t affected food aid yet, but Iowa’s contingency funding for WIC could run out if the standoff in Washington drags on.

Iowa Republican U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson on Monday said she supports the Trump administration’s move to terminate an annual federal report tracking food insecurity among Americans.

Actor Kate Mulgrew, a Dubuque native, says Lindsay James has the “fire in the belly” to flip Iowa’s 2nd District. The two toured Feed Iowa First in Marion on Monday to talk farming, hunger and the Farm Bill.

Food banks in Iowa will get $200,000 in new funding this year to address food insecurity by buying fresh food — such as dairy products, meat, poultry, eggs, grains, honey and produce — from local producers.

What are grocery stores doing to divert food from landfills? And what happens to the food that doesn’t get sold?