Cuts to federal food aid are leaving struggling families more reliant on free school breakfasts and lunches, while teachers and food banks report rising need.
Brittany, a 41-year-old single mother in Tennessee, had to absorb a painful change when she went through a recent recertification for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. She was told she no longer qualified for the $500 a month she had been receiving for herself and her two children, even though she earns $16 an hour as a medical assistant and is already stretched by rent, petrol and groceries. “If there wasn’t breakfast and lunch available at school, we probably would be hungry some of that time throughout the month,” she said.
Her family’s experience reflects a broader squeeze on low-income households as federal food aid tightens and school meal programmes become more important. The article’s original report said H.R. 1 included the largest cuts to SNAP in history, and the Centre on Budget and Policy Priorities has said more than 1.5 million children have already lost access to the programme since the law was signed. A Washington Post report said the wider toll is even larger, citing more than 5 million people, including about 2 million children, who have lost benefits.
That pressure is being felt in classrooms as well as kitchens. Teachers in districts with high rates of poverty say they are seeing more hunger, more requests for snacks and more dependence on school food. Kolbe Ricks, a teacher and coach in Texas, said colleagues keep snack drawers because children cannot focus when they are hungry. Erin Hysom of the Food Research & Action Centre said the SNAP reductions are likely to raise hunger not only at home but also during the school day.
In Colorado, Ebony Webster said she does not qualify for SNAP, but her pay still is not enough to cover school meals for her three children. She welcomed the state’s Healthy School Meals for All programme, which is helping provide free breakfast and lunch. Webster, who also serves on the board of the Southeast Food Coalition, said she has noticed longer lines at food pantries and greater need in the community as more families struggle to make ends meet.
The strain is also being felt by families caring for children and older relatives. In Baltimore, Cindy Camp looks after her 91-year-old mother as well as three grandchildren, and says the family relies on school lunches and a food resource centre to get by. Georgetown’s Centre on Poverty and Inequality has argued that the SNAP cuts are deepening hunger rather than encouraging work, while other policy groups say the changes reflect a major shift in federal food support, including stricter work rules, state cost-sharing and reduced eligibility. For the families described here, the result is simpler and harsher: school meals are no longer just helpful, but essential.
Disclaimer: This content is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical judgment, advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
