Latest news with #Section32
Yahoo
11-04-2025
- Yahoo
Deliveries to Food Bank of the Southern Tier cancelled due to federal cuts
ELMIRA, N.Y. (WIVT/WBGH) – Federal cuts have led to trucks loaded with food to feed the hungry from being halted before arriving at the Food Bank of the Southern Tier. The United States Department of Agriculture cut funding to its Commodity Credit Corporation which had provided money for the Emergency Food Assistance Program. A few weeks ago, a delivery of cheese, chicken, milk, dried fruit, turkey, eggs and pork chops to the Food Bank was cancelled. The Food Bank is headquartered in Elmira and distributes items to pantries and soup kitchens across a six-county region, including Broome and Tioga Counties. The Vice President of Community Impact, Randi Quackenbush, says the delivery would have been in addition to its typical bonus loads, and therefore considered bonus-bonus. However, the cancellation represents 14% of all bonus loads, equivalent to 215,408 meals valued at over $434,000. Last week, the Food Bank got news that it will be receiving 11 additional loads of produce and nuts from another CCC program called Section 32 worth $485, 914 and representing 258,233 meals. While Quackenbush acknowledges that that represents a slight increase over the amount that was canceled, they are still disappointed about the loss of meat and dairy proteins for people with food insecurity. Explore Chenango Outdoor Challange returns for second year Deliveries to Food Bank of the Southern Tier cancelled due to federal cuts Delhi man facing rape charges Copper cable dropped into Susquehanna River by thieves removed by NYSEG NYSP: Elmira woman arrested for driving on meth with child in car Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
02-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
USDA cancels shipments to Tri-Cities food banks
SALEM, Va. (WJHL) – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has canceled shipments of food headed to local food banks. Pamela Irvine, the President and CEO of Feeding Southwest Virginia, said the food bank was informed that a shipment meant to be delivered between April and July was not coming. 'It was $513,000 worth of food that would have come to Feeding Southwest Virginia,' Irvine said. 'We were told that it was part of the process of looking at, you know, making some cuts in federal programs.' $722K in food shipments to East Tennessee food bank canceled by U.S. Department of Agriculture The cancelations are a result of the USDA's Commodities Credit Corporation being paused for a federal review. Second Harvest Food Bank of Northeast Tennessee also confirmed that a shipment of 10 truckloads of food was canceled. Irvine said the partnership Feeding Southwest Virginia has with the USDA is the most consistent way the food bank gets nutritious food. 'It's 31% of our food supply,' Irvine said. 'So, this food is extremely important, and the partnership is important to us. We're talking about eggs and milk and fresh fruits and vegetables that are extremely important.' Despite the cancelations, Irvine said she does not want to cause panic. 'I want our neighbors not to panic, but we are concerned as we move forward to ensure that we will have a strong Farm Bill.' The Farm Bill provides funding to the programs within the USDA. It is reauthorized by Congress every five years. 'They're in that continuing resolution through September. That is the priority. And then hopefully we'll get to the Farm Bill reauthorization.' Feeding Southwest Virginia and Second Harvest Food Bank of Northeast Tennessee accept donations. In a statement sent to News Channel 11, the USDA said: 'The Biden Administration inflated statutory programs with Commodity Credit Corporation dollars without any plans for long-term solutions, and even in 2024, used the pandemic as a reason to make funding announcements. While the pandemic is over, USDA has not and will not lose focus on its core mission of strengthening food security, supporting agricultural markets, and ensuring access to nutritious foods. For example, last month, USDA released over half a billion in previously obligated funds for LFPA, LFPA for Tribes, and LFS to fulfill existing commitments and support ongoing local food purchases. Additionally, USDA recently announced $261 million in available fruits, vegetables, and tree nuts, made possible through Section 32 purchases. These foods go directly to food banks and other charitable organizations. States are eligible to receive products including tomatoes, grapes, pistachios, asparagus, apricots, strawberries, and peaches, among many others. And while the Biden-era TEFAP slush fund was terminated, the program continues to operate uninterrupted, as originally intended by Congress, with more than $166 million spent in recent months to connect families with food. The Department will continue to use its procurement authority to support producers and consumers where appropriate, and with 16 nutrition programs under its purview, ensure families continue to have access to affordable and abundant food.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
28-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Massachusetts Food Banks Face Devastating $3.3 Million Cut
$3.3 million is now on the chopping block for food banks in Massachusetts. The Greater Boston Food Bank just learned about the federal cuts from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Greater Boston Food Bank CEO Catherine D'Amato says she's scrambling to figure out how to fill the new gaps after learning 122,000 cases of food will no longer be delivered here. 'Which that means, orders that have been in the cue that are being expected have been canceled,' said D'Amato. D'Amato says the food bank relies on the USDA for 17% of its food, especially for the fresh produce, dairy, and poultry. 'It's a significant amount, it's the first piece of information that we've gotten in terms of impact, so if that food's not there then families don't have access,' said D'Amato. The USDA sent the following statement in response to Boston 25 News: 'There has been no pause in regular TEFAP purchases. The funding that was designated from CCC has been repurposed. The Biden Administration created unsustainable programming and expectations using the Commodity Credit Corporation. Regardless, USDA continues to purchase food for The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP), with over $166 million spent in FY 2025 to date for program requirements. USDA also is using Section 32 purchases to support TEFAP, purchasing over $300 million in various poultry, fish, fruits, vegetables, and tree nuts. USDA recently approved an additional $261 million in Section 32 purchases to provide even more fruits, vegetables, and tree nuts to TEFAP. " 'The products that we know that have been cut include both some of those products still from the COVID-era funding and from other USDA programs,' said D'Amato. D'Amato says pre-pandemic, 1 in 8 people relied on a food pantry in Massachusetts. Since COVID, 1 in 3 people are food insecure in the state, and that rate remains the same today. 'At a time when there is rising food insecurity in this state, it's really concerning to see these cuts at the federal level,' said Ashley Randle, commissioner of the MA Department of Agricultural Resources. 'Hungry people need to be fed, everyone has a right to food, whether it's a USDA commodity, a state commodity, purchased or donated, that's the portfolio for us, the sources, any one of those sources can cause disruption,' said D'Amato. With these federal cuts, the Greater Boston Food Bank is hoping to gather more donations and possibly get assistance from state lawmakers. If you would like to donate or if you need help getting food, visit: The Greater Boston Food Bank Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
Yahoo
27-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Latest USDA cut removes 700,000 pounds of meat, dairy, and eggs from Columbus food bank
Federal funding reductions are driving uncertainty for local food banks as another United States Department of Agriculture cut recently stripped the Mid-Ohio Food Collective of 700,000 pounds of food. The Mid-Ohio Food Collective told The Dispatch the USDA has canceled deliveries of $1.4 million worth of mostly meat, dairy and eggs, amounting to a loss of 697,000 pounds of food. Matt Habash, CEO of Mid-Ohio Food Collective, said that while MOFC is losing assistance, demand for food banks is at an all-time high. "These are your neighbors," Habash said. "When you think of poverty issues and hunger issues, we get this image of a single person in the homeless shelter. The vast majority (of food pantry users) are people your kids go to school with, that live in your neighborhood." The Mid-Ohio Food Collective is being hurt by USDA reductions in several programs, including The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP), as well as changes to the Commodity Credit Corporation and Section 32, which helps the government offload surplus commodities. The canceled USDA programs are just among the number of challenges that are now facing food banks in the region, including inflation, proposed cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and a proposed Ohio budget that strips $7.5 million from food pantries. The USDA also recently canceled money for the Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program (LFPA), which supplies assistance to local food banks, schools and organizations in underserved communities. The LFPA program provided more than $1 million in purchasing power to the collective, The Dispatch previously reported. Habash said all these factors add up to a stretching of MOFC's resources to provide high-quality, healthy food to the 20-county region it serves. Last year, MOFC distributed more than 83 million pounds of food to over 500,000 people across its service area. "There's going to be a lot of hungry people," Habash said. "It's just going to be less food available for people that need it now." Habash said that if SNAP benefits are cut, it will have a cascading effect on non-profits like MOFC, which are already seeing high levels of demand. "There's no amount of local private funding that will make up for that," Habash said. " He said there is a misconception that people who use SNAP and local food pantries are lazy, or don't want to work. When the reality is, he said, that most people using food pantries work one or even two jobs to try and make ends meet. Oftentimes, he said, that amid monthly expenses, many people who are "living on the edge" choose to cut their own food budgets to make ends meet. "Nobody wants to come and get emergency food, they would rather provide for themselves," Habash said. "That's a big misnomer in this, that these people are not working. They say 'Go get a job,' well these people already have one." The cuts and uncertainty also threaten MOFC's mission of providing fresh food to people. Last year, 64% of the food MOFC serves was fresh, according to MOFC data. The desire for making sure people have access to healthy food, Habash said, coincides with Health and Human Services Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr.'s 'Make America Healthy Again' initiative, and said that food banks have been working on a national "food is medicine" strategy. "I suggest that we're a high-value, low-cost health care strategy," Habash said. "We're getting product from farmers and being able to give that directly to people that see better health outcomes. And not having those dollars puts us far behind in terms of being able to do that work." While food drives and volunteering may be helpful, Habash said, the MOFC is not going to make up federal and potential state losses with private charity. Instead, Habash encouraged those concerned to call their state and federal lawmakers and tell them that these cuts are unacceptable. "Charity giving is not going to be an answer," Habash said. "(The community) has to say: 'This is not okay. We should not have a hunger problem in America.' Go down and talk to the legislature and say 'this is our livelihood.'" Cole Behrens covers K-12 education and school districts in central Ohio. Have a tip? Contact Cole at cbehrens@ or connect with him on X at @Colebehr_report This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: USDA cuts: Mid-Ohio Food Collective loses $1.4M, 700k pounds of food
Yahoo
24-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Greater Cleveland Food Bank faces uncertainty surrounding food deliveries from government
CLEVELAND (WJW) – The Greater Cleveland Food Bank is very concerned after the government announced cuts to essential food programs and paused the delivery of hundreds of thousands of pounds of food — all while food insecurity continues to be a major concern in Cleveland, a city with one of the highest child poverty rates in the country. Twenty loads have been returned, said the food bank's Director of Advocacy and Public Education Jessica Semachko. 'That's 553,000 pounds of food.' 'Foul play' death: Akron boy Jadako Taylor, 12, forced into icy bath as punishment, police say Semachko said the federal government made major cuts totaling $1 billion to local food banks and schools, leading the U.S. Department of Agriculture to pause Commodity Credit Corporation deliveries across the nation. 'This is center of the plate — healthy, nutritious food — and it just creates a lot of uncertainty,' Semachko said. 'Are these simply delays? When will the food be received? What we do know is it is going to make it more difficult in the short term to be able to meet the increasing need we see in the community.' The food bank said it receives just over 20% of its food from the federal government. There is still a very high demand for food assistance in Northeast Ohio, as the public continues to face economic instability due to rising costs of living and inflation at the grocery store. 'We see need above pandemic-era levels,' Semachko said. 'Last year, [we] served 424,000 individuals across our six-county service area.' The state of Ohio is also looking to trim $7.5 million from its food program budget, further casting a cloud of uncertainty over the future. 'We are advocating for a robust, bipartisan farm bill to ensure that Local Food Purchase Assistance and bonus product is set at the levels that will meet community need,' Semachko said. During this period of uncertainty, the food bank will operate as normal, serving thousands of people each month. 'We want our neighbors and our partners to know that we are committed to the mission,' Semachko said. 'The food bank doors are open, if you are facing need, if you are in need, if you are facing hunger.' Mother, 2-year-old recovering in hospital after Parma hit and run A USDA spokesperson in a Monday statement to FOX 8 News wrote: The Biden administration created unsustainable programming and expectations using the Commodity Credit Corporation. Regardless, USDA continues to purchase food for [The Emergency Food Assistance Program], with over $166 million spent in FY 2025 to date for program requirements. USDA also is using Section 32 purchases to support TEFAP, purchasing over $300 million in various poultry, fish, fruits, vegetables and tree nuts. USDA recently approved an additional $261 million in Section 32 purchases to provide even more fruits, vegetables, and tree nuts to TEFAP. With 16 robust nutrition programs and the Section 32 market support program in place, USDA remains focused on its core mission: strengthening food security, supporting agricultural markets and ensuring access to nutritious food. The food bank said it relies on donations to sustain its efforts. If you would like to help, you can do so here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
