The House of Representatives passed a bill that proposes sweeping changes to fundamental programs that millions of Americans rely on, including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Medicare. SNAP is the nation’s biggest food assistance program, serving 42 million Americans each month. The bill cuts $290 billion in SNAP funding. The bill is [...]
Map the Meal Gap Study released by Feeding America shows more kids and families impacted by lack of nutritious food. Just as the U.S. House of Representatives is considering devastating budget cuts to SNAP and Medicaid – programs that help older adults, children and hard-working families, the newly released Map the Meal Gap report shows [...]
The U.S. House Agriculture Committee’s proposed spending cuts to SNAP and Medicaid would increase food insecurity, reduce access to health insurance, and lead to poorer outcomes.These cuts will present states, including Texas, with a financial burden and choices between funding education, other important government responsibilities, and the increased cost of nutrition and health services. They [...]
Houston Food Bank is facing an $11 million cut in federal funding, which equates to about 500 fewer truckloads of nutritious food like produce, dairy, and protein for our neighbors facing food insecurity. As mentioned on Houston Public Media, ABC 13, Hoodline, and KHOU 11, these cuts will significantly impact our services. Despite having to [...]
Recently Policy Analyst Amanda Pope with Houston Food Bank and Associate Program Manager Jordan Pacelli Everett with Prevention Institute published an Op-Ed in the Houston Chronicle on the upcoming legislation HB 32 and SB 38. You can read the piece here. Houston Food Bank strives to address the root causes of food insecurity, we [...]
With the start of a new season the weather changes, flowers bloom, and the sun comes out. However, as the seasons change one thing will stay constant – elections. May will bring a joint election. Does this sound new to you? Many believe that March and November are the only times we form part of [...]
On Wednesday, May 29, Houston Food Bank welcomed Bill Ludwig, regional administrator for the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) Southwest Region for the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) for a visit aimed to enhance disaster-relief efforts and improve ways to provide critical food assistance to those served by Houston Food Bank. Ludwig’s visit [...]
With the start of a new season the weather changes, flowers bloom, and the sun comes out. However, as the seasons change one thing will stay constant - elections. March brought a primary election where we got to make our voices heard and select who will be on the November ballot. But it doesn’t [...]
Houston Food Bank represents food banks on the American Commodity Distribution Association (ACDA) board that brings together agriculture, food manufacturers and processors, state agencies and schools to support the distribution of USDA foods to neighbors in need. Together, board members from these various sectors visited the Senate and House Agriculture and Appropriations committees on Capitol [...]
In the financial hierarchy of many households’ budgets, rent is the priority. And with rent taking up the lion's share of many household budgets forcing families to make due with less, it highlights a fundamental truth: housing stability is inextricably linked with food security. A household's rent is a non-negotiable cost to be [...]