A new report examining barriers to food access faced by many southwest Kansans shows that participation in nutrition assistance programs remained flat during the pandemic even though the need for help increased. The report by the Kansas Appleseed Center for Law and Justice is focused on food insecurity in Stevens, Seward, Grant, Ford and Finney counties. In these areas, the report indicates, the number of households receiving federal benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program declined slightly while unemployment spiked. This finding stood out to Martha Terhaar, a new campaign advocate for Kansas Appleseed, because unemployment is directly linked to food insecurity. “One of the main things you do when you file for unemployment is also apply for food stamps and SNAP benefits,” Terhaar said. “So to not see that correlation happen means, you know, something’s missing, there’s a piece of the puzzle missing.”
Source: Kansas Reflector
