Local food banks feel the impact of federal cuts

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. (WCHS) — Area food banks are already feeling the effects of cuts at the federal level and have concerns about what could potentially be coming down the pipeline.

Cyndi Kirkhart, the CEO of Facing Hunger Foodbank, said it started with the USDA ending the local food purchase agreements earlier this year, which allowed food banks to partner with and purchase from local farms. She said this resulted in losing out on about $1.4 million in food products. Then, she said the federal government cut their caseload in the Commodity Supplemental Food Program.

The latest has been a cut from the Emergency Food Assistance Program to the tune of 330,000 pounds of food for Facing Hunger, just in the month of April.

“When we receive about a million pounds a month to distribute, that’s a full third of what we’ll be able to provide to the community, so it really felt like what’s next?” Kirkhart said.

While the cuts have continued, Kirkhart said the need only grows.

“Our need is about 23% over what we normally would see, which means an additional 25 to 26,000 people, so now I’m at 156 to 160,000 versus 130,000,” she said.

It also has a trickle-down effect for the small food banks and pantries that rely on Facing Hunger for supplies.

Rebecca Hooker, the director of Christian Help of Mingo County, said it has been a combination of things that are stacking up. She said with the potential cutting of other services like Medicaid or SNAP, this could lead to more people needing their services.

Christian Help of Mingo County is located in Kermit, and she said during the February floods, the community lost its nearest grocery store, which has already increased the need in the area for food.

“I’m very, very concerned, if we’re 110 days in to this administration and seeing what is being funded and what is being gutted, what’s going to happen to southern West Virginia? This isn’t just one thing. This is a huge pile on,” Hooker said.

Kirkhart said they will continue to work with Congress and hope for a strong farm bill that supports all of the safety net programs.

“My budget certainly did not anticipate these kinds of cuts, but again, we’ve been good partners with the government for a long time. We will just continue to raise the voices of the communities we serve to them and hope for the best,” she said.