Tampa Bay food banks bracing for cutbacks under Trump

Yahoo

23-05-2025

Food banks and nonprofits supplying meals to low-income people across Tampa Bay are bracing for potential cutbacks to federal programs that supply them with food or money.
The changes being pushed by Donald Trump's administration come at a time when the cost of living, including groceries, is getting more expensive, pushing demand for affordable food higher. And the price of distributing that food is getting more expensive, too, advocates say.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture in March cut more than $1 billion in federal funding when it canceled two programs that gave money to schools and food banks to buy food from local ranchers and farmers.
Because of these cuts, food banks nationwide have lost access to millions of meals. In Central Florida, an organization that distributes meals to seven counties lost more than $1 million worth of food, according to news reports. And it's continuing to struggle with federal funding losses.
Some nonprofits in Tampa Bay said they are still waiting to see whether the programs they use will get cut. But as the Trump administration looks to reduce other federal assistance programs, local food banks are worried the issues may compound.
Feeding Tampa Bay, a nonprofit that serves 10 counties in the region, receives about 20% of its meals from a federal program, amounting to 20 million meals.
Thomas Mantz, president and chief executive officer of Feeding Tampa Bay, said he's unsure if the program will get cut next year.
'We're going to do everything we can, but I don't suspect that we can make up that gap,' he said. 'We are a charitable-based organization, so all of what we do comes from the goodwill of the community, so that would be a big impact.'
Metropolitan Ministries, a Tampa-based nonprofit providing services for people without homes or at-risk of losing housing, serves nearly 133,000 meals a month across Hillsborough, Pasco and Pinellas counties.
Ten percent of its budget comes from federal funding sources. The nonprofit also relies on the federal AmeriCorps program, which connects volunteers with communities in need.
This year, the Trump administration made sweeping cuts to staff and funding for AmeriCorps. Two dozen states last month sued the federal government over those changes.
Christine Long, chief programs officer for Metropolitan Ministries, said she and her staff are regrouping after losing 30 volunteers from the AmeriCorps program. Now, they're monitoring potential funding changes affecting the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
'Anytime there's a crunch on somebody's budget, oftentimes food is one of the first things that they lose the ability to purchase,' Long said. 'People who help folks with hunger issues are so critically important.'
Inconsistent federal funding has long been a challenge to operating a nonprofit, said David Lomaka, executive director of Neighborly Senior Care Network in Pinellas.
The nonprofit provides services for older residents, including Meals on Wheels home delivery and group dining. It gets federal funding from the Older Americans Act, which Congress passed in 1965 to provide social and nutritional services to seniors.
Nonprofits have to pay up front for their services and repayment isn't guaranteed.
'The money starts and stops,' Lomaka said. 'Starts and stops.'
Neighborly Senior Care Network bills the state for the cost of its services, and the state then bills the federal government. Once the expense is approved, it has to go back down the ladder.
As layoffs began in D.C. earlier this year, Lomaka said he heard there could be delays in receiving those reimbursements.
'It's just very ineffective, inefficient,' he said. 'But it's the government, so this has been going on for a while.'
Trump's fiscal year 2026 recommended funding puts some services under the Older Americans Act at risk because of proposed cuts to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' budget, according to the National Council on Aging.
Local leaders are also keeping a close eye on cuts and restrictions to government assistance programs like Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, which provide health care and grocery money for low-income households.
These programs are a part of the public health ecosystem. When people struggle to access food, they are also likely to have barriers to health care, said Erica Monet Li, a health policy analyst for the Florida Policy Institute, a nonpartisan advocacy organization.
'Health care and nutrition absolutely intersect,' Li said. 'When people are properly fed and can feed their children, they have better health outcomes in general.'
Medicaid and food assistance have been prominent policy issues for Republicans this session, who want to reduce spending on these programs. The House on Thursday passed a sweeping bill, dubbed the One Big, Beautiful Bill, that would make more stringent work requirements for Medicaid and food assistance.
In Pinellas and Hillsborough counties alone, 26,000 people in households with children could lose some amount of food assistance benefits if these work requirements are enacted, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.
Long, with Metropolitan Ministries, and other food bank leaders said these restrictions could push people further into the safety net of government assistance.
'These types of government changes are going to impact their daily life,' she said. 'I think we're going to see a big increase in people coming to us for our services, yet our services are dwindling as well.'