Mid-Ohio Food Collective says SNAP cuts could have negative impact on food banks

COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Mid-Ohio Food Collective provides food for over a million people in Ohio. They said if President Donald Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” passes then it will create more demand, and they are not sure if they can keep up.

Matt Habash, the CEO of Mid-Ohio Food Collective said SNAP is the first line of defense against hunger. He worries that without that line, everything will fall upon the food banks. 

“More people are going to show up and they will have less food to give each person that show up. Ultimately, it will hurt a lot of Ohioans. They don’t have enough food for themselves, their kids, seniors, disabled. They will really suffer,” said Habash. 

Joree Novotny, the executive director of the Ohio Association of Food Banks, said if the bill passes, it will fall on states to pay for SNAP. She doesn’t think that will work. 

“In Ohio, these proposals would mean the state would have to come up with hundreds of millions of dollars each year or risk forfeiting promise of basic food assistance for every Ohio family,” said Novotny. 

She said the impact will affect families who are in need. 

“It would worsen hunger and hardship for hundreds of thousands of Ohio households,” she said. 

Janetta Powell knows what it’s like to rely on SNAP benefits. She has six children, and when she was diagnosed with cancer, she couldn’t work. 

“SNAP gave me those stamps to assist with supporting my children and making sure they could eat and that I could eat,” said Powell. 

Powell said SNAP helped her when nobody else could. Now, she worries about the future of the program. 

“I have experienced the highs and the lows and without that snap it’s really hard out here, it is people are suffering,” said Powell. 

The Senate is expected to vote on the bill by July 4.