The SNAP Delay Ended Over a Month Ago, Arizona Food Banks Still Remains a Lifeline for Thousands
The SNAP Delay Ended Over a Month Ago, Arizona Food Banks Still Remains a Lifeline for Thousands.
Kaitlyn Fuller
In communities big or small, the growing lines outside food banks reveal the truth: more and more Americans are unable to afford a crucial necessity to get through the week. The recent surge is becoming more worrisome day after day in recognition that a portion of the food banks across Arizona are struggling to keep up with the expectation of hungry families. Although SNAP benefits returned for millions of low-income Americans nearly over a month ago, restrictions leave a heavy consequence on the individuals who rely on the program.
SNAP benefits served 42 million Americans in 2025, but were utilized to feed 40 million Americans in 2018; showing an increase in
dependency for a social safety net. From the beginning of November when the SNAP delay ended, SNAP’s budget has been cut. Only an average of $6 is spent per day with most SNAP recipients having children at home. Additional requirements for adults who have children above the age of 14, adults aged 55-64, veterans, and unhoused people will now have to work 20 hours per week to preserve full benefits. These changes mean some will unfortunately have to reapply for eligibility and regrettably some immigrants will lose access to the program. What’s expected is that 1.1 million fewer people will lose access each month to the program until 2034.
St. Mary’s Food Bank lost deliveries such as 168,750 pounds of eggs, 583,320 pounds of chicken and 460,530 pounds of milk which equals to around 1.9 million pounds of food canceled in mid-October. Gov. Katie Hobbs visited the Flagstaff Family Food Center on December 9th to take a tour of the facility and spend time volunteering. The governor is boldly outspoken about the challenges around social safety net issues and the instability of reliance on the government to feed local communities: “We have a lot of challenges around safety net issues -- housing, food security. No one organization can do it alone; certainly, the government can’t,” Hobbs spoke.
FFFC earlier on during the SNAP delay had a record-breaking non-holiday in October, serving over 380 households out of its community kitchen. The rising cost of living leads to an abundance of lower/middle income families beginning to utilize their services. Especially those from rural communities spanning all over Northern Arizona land the Navajo Reservation from Winslow, Williams, and Ashfork with some families requiring assistance multiple times a week.
Food banks are a necessity for every 1 in 6 Americans. Most struggle to get month through month after rent, utilities, and bills are paid but after time leaves the last of what little remains of their money to buy food. Across Arizona, food banks were already beginning to see an increase in the number of people being served each month last year, even before the SNAP benefits delay.
After the thanksgiving holiday at FFFC which served 931 households, the freezer space is still recovering from the turkey drive at NAU, meaning the meat they receive is often sent out the very same day they receive it. The majority of their food donations come from St. Mary’s Food Bank from a semi-truck down from Phoenix then drives up to Flagstaff three times a week: “It usually holds us over pretty well for a week or two. Somedays we can receive a truckload of nothing but chips or just Gatorade, so having to plan around with what we have is another challenge. Everybody is usually pretty good at rationing out what a family might need though”. The rest of their food donations fortunately come from local grocery stores by a grocery rescue truck to collect the food donations.