Shrinking at the SNAP of a Finger – More Cuts to Food Aid Loom as North Carolina Faces High Rates of Food Hardship

November 2013

The Tar Heel state has the fifth highest level of food insecurity in the nation, meaning many North Carolinians face the prospect of spending the holiday season with little or no food on the table. Despite the economic recovery, the number of North Carolinians who don’t have a consistent supply of food is on the rise, evidence of the state’s large job shortage and boom in low-wage jobs. The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) helps families purchase a nutritionally adequate diet and is one of the nation’s most powerful weapons available to alleviate hunger and poverty. Yet, at the beginning of November, every North Carolinian who receives SNAP saw a cut to their benefits, and Congress is poised to make another round of deep cuts that will likely put even more low-income families at risk of hunger.