JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Thousands of Floridians now worry they won’t have food on the table if SNAP benefits don’t go out in November, should the federal shutdown continue.
“For every meal that’s distributed by a food bank, SNAP benefits provide nine meals. There’s no way to make that food up,” Susan King, President and CEO of Feeding Northeast Florida, said.
That struggle is something Feeding Northeast Florida is seeing as more people have turned to food pantries for help since the government shutdown began 27 days ago. If it continues, November’s snap benefits or monthly payments for low-income recipients to buy food will not be issued. Until the federal funding is restored, it leaves those at feeding Northeast Florida to help people with the little they have left.
“You’ll notice the shelves are fairly bare,” King said.
“We estimate that approximately 66,000 households in Duval County receive SNAP benefits. That equates to more than $20 million a month of economic impact,” King said.
We did reach out to the Florida Department of Children and Families, which administers the SNAP program here. DCF officials declined an interview request but sent a statement saying in part:
October SNAP benefits will be issued as scheduled to eligible Floridians, and SNAP recipients may receive notices of their November benefit amounts during this time. Still, November benefits will not be issued until federal funding is restored.
“If you look around our warehouse, you’ll see there isn’t a food supply currently to meet the demand that we’re seeing,” King said.
But King says this impact is being felt across the states.
Feeding Northeast Florida partners with 400 agencies, partnerships, and programs in 12 counties across the area.
Right now, the food they have is already marked for distribution or is reserved for natural disasters. So, managers there are counting on people’s generosity to help meet the demand.
“It’s hard to contemplate how big this problem is, but it’s bigger than anything that we’ve ever experienced,” King said.
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