42 Million Americans Without Food? Pledge to Donate to your Local Food Bank

In the US, about 42.1 million people per month, or 12.6% of U.S. residents, rely on SNAP in order to feed themselves or their families. 81 percent of SNAP households include a child, an elderly person, or a person with disabilities. Folks who are unhoused are also eligible for SNAP.

With rising food prices, imagine budgeting for yourself or your family on $6 a day per person, which is the average amount SNAP recipients will receive in fiscal year 2025.

On February 25, the Republican-controlled House, by a very small margin, passed a budget resolution that called for $4.5 trillion in tax cuts and a $2 trillion cut in mandatory spending. Even though 47.4 million people are food insecure in the US, the cuts passed in the resolution could cut or severely weaken federal nutrition programs such as SNAP, as well as the School Breakfast Program and National School Lunch Program, which aim to ensure that kids don't go hungry at school by providing free or reduced cost breakfasts and lunches.

Anti-hunger advocates and folks who rely on federal nutrition programs are saying the uncertainty about the impact of these cuts is at an unprecedented high.

The ultimate devastating impact of cutting some portion or all of these programs is the fear that they might never come back.

If households throughout the country lose SNAP, food banks and pantries throughout the country are likely to get hit very hard. Along with SNAP, free school lunch and breakfasts will be endangered.

If you have the resources, pledge to donate to your local food banks and check in with friends and family to see how you might galvanize your efforts or even lend them a home-cooked meal if they are in a time of need.