Health
Chicago-Area Food Pantries Navigate Concerns About Potential Cuts to Federal Assistance Programs
“We’re bracing ourselves for anything and everything”
Volunteers work at Nourishing Hope’s headquarters on Aug. 17, 2023. (Courtesy of Alyssa Schukar for Nourishing Hope)
Potential cuts to federal social safety net programs and uncertainty about how new trade policies might impact already high food costs are among concerns food pantry leaders are navigating amid policy shifts and funding cuts by the Trump administration.
“We’re reading the writing on the wall,” Greater Chicago Food Depository Director of Communications Man-Yee Lee said. “Cuts to programs like SNAP, Medicaid would be disastrous. Food insecurity would skyrocket.”
A House GOP budget plan passed last week asks the agriculture committee, which funds the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, to cut $230 billion over 10 years. The energy and commerce committee, responsible for health care spending like Medicaid, was asked to cut $880 billion over the decade.
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The Greater Chicago Food Depository distributes food to 850 food pantries, soup kitchens and shelters across Chicago and the Cook County area. The nonprofit Nourishing Hope is one of its food pantry partners.
Food pantries have been overwhelmed since the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Nourishing Hope Interim CEO Jennie Hull.
“Our staff are getting tired from meeting crisis after crisis, and I think we’re all just gearing up for the next one, which we know is coming,” Hull said.
On Tuesday, the Illinois Department of Agriculture announced the Trump administration has stopped reimbursements for a program designed to help farmers supply fresh produce to food banks, known as the Local Food Purchase Assistance Program, or LFPA.
LFPA uses federal funding to buy fresh products from farmers at a fair market value, and then distributes the food to communities via food pantries and other similar programs designed to help people in need. The food produced comes from socially disadvantaged farmers, including those the federal government defines as new farmers.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture informed states that it would stop reimbursements for costs incurred after Jan.19, 2025, according to a state of Illinois press release.
Through the LFPA, the Greater Chicago Food Depository purchased food from nine farmers to distribute to about 40 pantry partners. While the food bank is losing a “crucial funding source,” Lee said, it is encouraging farmers to reach out to renegotiate the terms of their purchase agreement.
“We’ll still be getting the same amount of fresh produce to our pantries (using donated dollars as opposed to LFPA) but the impact to farmers is what will be more harmful,” Lee said in an email.
Nourishing Hope receives federal funding for its mental health care services and case management programs. While the organization has not been impacted by the Trump administration’s federal funding cuts, Hull said people coming into the food pantry are stressed about potential cuts to Medicaid, SNAP and other social services.
Hull worries about her organization not being able to make up for an increase in people seeking support from the food pantry in the event of them losing SNAP benefits.
“We’ve weathered a lot of storms, we’ve always met the need, and we’ve found a way to serve our community, and I know we will continue to do that,” Hull said. “I just don’t know what’s gonna come next.”
People who rely on food pantries, such as seniors on a fixed income and people living paycheck to paycheck, are among those who would be most impacted by federal cuts to social safety net programs, according to Hull.
In the meantime, Nourishing Hope and the Greater Chicago Food Depository are continuing day-to-day operations.
“We’re bracing ourselves for anything and everything,” Lee said.
Capitol News Illinois contributed to this report.
Contact Eunice Alpasan: @eunicealpasan | 773-509-5362 | [email protected]
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