Emergency SNAP benefits for Iowa households will expire this Friday. Minnesota’s are set to expire April 15th, leaving those families to go back to pre-pandemic benefits.
Channel One Regional Food Bank says the need for food has more than doubled since the start of the pandemic.
With the state ending emergency SNAP benefits, staff at Channel One predict the need might be even bigger.
Since the pandemic began to impact the economy and prices started to increase, the U.S. Department of Agriculture granted waivers to certain states and territories allowing them to issue emergency supplemental income to SNAP recipients.
Jessica Sund, with Channel One, says when these benefits are not available, it falls on the food shelves to make up the difference.
She says 80% of people who visit the food shelf are working full-time or part-time. The supplemental SNAP assistance is at risk of ending on April 15th if the Biden Administration does not extend the Public Health Emergency declaration put in place during the pandemic.