Millions of families brace for food crisis as pandemic-era boost to food stamps ends

Nicole Stevens, a single mother raising two teenage boys, relies heavily on food stamps to feed her family. However, with rising food prices and the end of the pandemic-era boost to food stamps, she is struggling to stretch her grocery budget. In March, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits are set to fall significantly, forcing Stevens and millions of other poor families across the country into potentially dire situations, including buying less food and skipping meals. The end of the emergency allotments is expected to result in an average loss of $82 in food stamps per person every month, according to the US Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) website’s estimates released on February 2, 2023.

Anti-hunger activists worry that the consequences will touch not only poor people but also the communities in which they live. The end of the emergency allotments is set to pull billions of dollars out of the economy. In February, the last month that emergency allotments will be issued, states are currently projecting that they will distribute at least $2.7 billion in these benefits. Food pantries and community groups are urgently spreading word about the impending cuts, as reported by The Guardian on February 15, 2023.

Tianna Gaines-Turner, a mother of four living in Philadelphia, was disappointed to learn about the slashing of emergency allotments. Emergency food providers are also planning for an increase in demand in the coming months, which might strain their already limited resources. Rising expenses mean that more individuals require food assistance, while also making it more expensive for food pantries to provide it. Over a dozen states, including Florida, Arizona, and Tennessee, have already discontinued emergency allotments for their populations, foreshadowing the financial pain to come.