Local food banks report a surge in demand only days after the USDA announced a suspension of the federal Food Share program beginning next month. Officials with the Feed My People agency say on an average weekday, they help some 300 to 350 households. Since the USDA announcement, they’ve already served up to 500 households a day. They say when the end of the Food Share payments officially end, they expect the number to rise.
Wisconsin has joined a group of states that are suing the Department of Agriculture over the suspension of SNAP benefits because of the government shutdown. The suit says the federal government has funds to continue the food assistance program during the shutdown. It says suspending the program would be the first in its history and would violate the Administrative Procedure Act. Around 40-million Americans, including about 700-thousand in Wisconsin, rely on SNAP benefits.
