Nutrition programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) are essential for our hardworking neighbors right here in Missouri. In fiscal year 2024, more than 655,000 Missourians put food on the table using SNAP benefits each month. This is important to note, especially as Congress is continuing work on the Farm Bill this year.
Over the past 15 years, perishable products have grown to make up almost two-thirds of the food Ozarks Food Harvest distributes annually. These include foods like dairy, fresh and frozen produce, meat, non-meat protein items like eggs and beans, and other foods that are fresh or refrigerated. Fresh fruits and vegetables alone now account for 20% of the food we provide for our neighbors facing hunger.
Did you know that for every meal Ozarks Food Harvest provides, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) provides nine? That’s the enormous impact federal nutrition programs have on our southwest Missouri community. It’s important for you to know this because Congress is revisiting the Farm Bill this fall, the legislation that funds nutrition programs like SNAP, and their decision will help determine if families can continue to put food on the table.
Ozarks Food Harvest will lose an estimated $3 million worth of food this year due to recent USDA cuts to The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP). A third of the cancelled orders were protein items like beef, chicken, eggs and pork, which are often the most expensive for us to purchase.
In the past year, The Food Bank’s network of faith-based and community charities served an average of 70,000 individuals every month; that’s 20,000 more than during the height of the COVID crisis. Why do we continue to see more working families in need of assistance when things seem to be back to normal?
Right now, we’re dealing with an emergency. The demand for food assistance in southwest Missouri continues to increase every month to be higher than it was during the peak of the pandemic. In June 2023, The Food Bank’s network of faith-based and community charities served more than 70,000 individuals in a month; that’s nearly 20,000 more than during the height of the COVID crisis.
Did you know the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) partners with, and depends on, Ozarks Food Harvest to be the largest food supplier to our neighbors facing hunger in southwest Missouri? Its long and trusted partnership with the USDA has made a huge impact on the number of nutritious meals provided through its network of 270 community and faith-based charities. That dramatic impact is what makes this year’s Farm Bill so important for families served by Ozarks Food Harvest.
Statement from Bart Brown, president/CEO of Ozarks Food Harvest
Dear friends of The Food Bank,
The budget proposal released this week by The White House would drastically reduce the much-needed government support many of our neighbors here in the Ozarks, and across the country, depend on to have enough to eat.