The federal government shutdown, which has now stretched previous a month, has put important providers in jeopardy, together with the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. To assist fill the hole, particular person donors are lending outsized help to starvation reduction nonprofits.
The SNAP program, previously referred to as food stamps, is run by the U.S. Division of Agriculture and supplies primary help to about 42 million individuals. The company cautioned final month that meals support could be suspended because the shutdown drags on.
An indication hangs at a customer support space, because the U.S. President Donald Trump administration mentioned it plans on Monday to partially fund meals support for thousands and thousands of People after two judges dominated it should use contingency funds to pay for the advantages in November throughout the federal government shutdown, at a grocery story in Lengthy Seashore, New York, U.S., Nov. 3, 2025.
Shannon Stapleton | Reuters
“[Monday’s] announcement is a crucial first step, but it surely’s not sufficient,” Diane Yentel, president and CEO of the Nationwide Council of Nonprofits, an business affiliation, mentioned in a press release. “Hundreds of thousands of households, youngsters, and seniors stay liable to delayed or lowered meals help,” she mentioned.
Native meals banks are sometimes the subsequent line of protection. Nevertheless, these nonprofits are additionally underneath stress with federal funding on hold.
“Meals banks, shelters, and neighborhood organizations are stretched skinny,” Yentel mentioned. “Each delay or discount in SNAP advantages pushes extra individuals towards emergency help and locations extra pressure on the nonprofit sector.”
Donations to starvation reduction efforts spike
Amid important funding shortages, particular person donors have stepped in to assist the nonprofits, charities and public service organizations that present help to households in want.
Between Oct. 23 and Oct. 27, giving to starvation reduction organizations surged roughly 587%, in keeping with Charity Navigator, a third-party evaluator.
“A number of meals banks are getting an amazing improve in donations,” mentioned Charity Navigator’s CEO Michael Thatcher. “Realizing that your neighbor goes hungry shouldn’t be OK.”
A resident browses donated meals gadgets within the pantry at Feeding South Florida in Pembroke Park, Florida, US, on Friday, Oct. 31, 2025.
Eva Marie Uzcategui | Bloomberg | Getty Photos
Donors can discover a reduction effort by websites resembling Charity Navigator, BBB Wise Giving Alliance or CharityWatch, which assess standards resembling how clear a nonprofit is about its funds and the way a lot of its price range goes towards packages.
To that finish, Charity Navigator compiled an “end hunger fund,” which splits donations amongst seven main nonprofits that present instant help, together with Feeding America and Second Harvest.
Alternatively, seek for meals banks inside your state or area, Thatcher mentioned: “You may give domestically or nationally; the necessity is there.”
Many neighborhood teams are additionally amassing meals and private care gadgets to distribute to households in danger.
