USA TODAY International Edition
Government shutdown could press food banks
Nutrition aid programs brace for more clients
Given the large number of government workers and contractors situated in the San Antonio area, Eric Cooper, the CEO of the San Antonio Food Bank, expects things to get busier soon, and that concerns him.
Cooper said late last week that the food bank had enough food on its shelves to last two more weeks – “maybe less.”
“The government shutdown is a bit of a mess. Families that are already struggling with poverty and trying to nourish themselves, they’re hearing that SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) and WIC (Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children) offices are closed,” Cooper said. “The safety nets are breached. We are in big trouble.”
As some 800,000 federal employees continue to go without a paycheck due to the partial government shutdown, nutrition aid programs across the country are bracing for what could be a sudden increase in clients seeking help.
Some say they are well stocked and ready for an increase in clients, while others are concerned about keeping their shelves stocked if the shutdown drags on.
San Antonio, officially nicknamed “Military City USA,” is the home of Joint Base San Antonio, a conglomerate of three military installations. The facility consists of Fort Sam Houston, the Randolph Air Force Base and Lackland Air Force Base. The area has many non-military government workers and contractors.
A complication for the San Antonio Food Bank: One of its large contributors, a Tyson Foods plant just outside San Antonio, has had trouble finding a U.S. Department of Agriculture inspector due to the government shutdown, and Cooper worries that might negatively affect the food processor.
“That directly impacts their operations and affects their productions,” Cooper said, “which in turn affects their workers.”
Food pantries in other parts of the country say they are stocked enough to provide assistance for at least a month. Trump said he’s prepared for the shutdown to last for years.
“Our warehouse is full, our stores are full, and we are ready to assist,” said Tim Sullivan, executive director of Tri-Cities Foodbank in the state of Washington.
The Tri-Cities Food Bank, a nonprofit agency that serves more than 40,000 families a year, received an influx of food donations just before the holidays and has a partnership with a local Costco, which has helped to fill the shelves.
“We are blessed to have this much stock coming up off of a high-demand holiday season,” Sullivan said. He said that although no one in the area has to go hungry for now, the longer the shutdown lasts, the more dire the situation becomes for food distributors.
“But, we are taking things one month at a time. We have families and businesses in the community who are willing to step up if we need replenishing.”