Food Insecurity

The state allocated $38 million to the Farmers Feeding Florida program. The new statewide initiative helps food banks distribute surplus and discounted farm products to families in need.

The district's meal sites are available through the Seamless Summer Option (SSO), a program under the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. The state gives rural districts, like Hernando County, extra leeway in distributing food.

Thanks to the success of the recent Stamp Out Hunger food drive, the shelves are full. But without enough hands to sort and hand out those donations, much of that food risks going unused.

Congress is close to cutting at least $200 billion from SNAP over 10 years and shifting some of the remaining costs to states. A single mom in Tampa says that would impact her ability to feed her kids.

Cuts to the grocery assistance program could undermine Fresh Access Bucks, which has been successful at addressing nutritional food deserts and supporting local growers.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture canceled two food programs earlier this year that would have provided $1 billion in funding. The budget cuts are part of the federal initiative to reduce government spending.

And $38 million would go to administer a competitive grant program aimed at helping Florida farmers

Meanwhile, Congress is considering moving federal food assistance programs such as SNAP, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, to the states

In Florida, it’s estimated that around one million children and more than 1,000 schools could lose access to free meals if changes to the Community Eligibility Provision are adopted.

Most of the people Bethanne Blinder fed couldn’t get to the pantry or her home, so she started using her car to deliver her meals to them.

A bill in the Florida Legislature would set up a yearlong “Hunger-Free Campus” pilot program at three state colleges or universities.

Migrant workers told volunteers that they’re worried about recent immigration crackdowns – but they feel comfortable coming to Nativity Food Bank pantries.