Foodbank CEO Lays Out Effects Of Federal SNAP Cuts

Research from the Feeding America organization shows more than a quarter million West Virginians get healthy food through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Their research also notes the just-passed federal reconciliation bill will shift more than $80 million of SNAP costs to the state by roughly the end of 2026.

Randy Yohe spoke with Cindi Kirkhart, CEO of the Huntington-based Facing Hunger Foodbank, about how these SNAP changes may affect thousands of Appalachians, many of them already living in food deserts.

Yohe: So how does it work? How do you get the food and where does it go?

Kirkhart: About 40% of our food is considered donated, but that includes the food resources, commodities that we receive from the Department of Agriculture. We have a really robust retail donation, Krogers and Walmarts that we pick up from there. And then what we don’t get donated, we purchase.

Yohe: And then, where does it go? How does it get distributed?

Kirkhart: We have a variety of distribution models. One is that we do a lot of county runs. So we have a network of about 253 partner agencies. So we go out into the counties where those pantries and service providers are and directly distribute to them. We have folks that come in and pick up product directly from the food bank. So they have capacity with trucks and that type of thing. Then we do mobile pantry distributions, backpack distributions, and then our other programming.

Yohe: So explain briefly what SNAP benefits are and how that relates to the food bank and its customers or clients.

Kirkhart: SNAP benefits are basically what we used to refer to as food stamps. So that is that Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. So for families that live in poverty, they receive SNAP benefits through an EBT card that then they can go out and make direct purchases of foods that they prefer. A lot of what the food bank may have to provide to them maybe isn’t a choice product for them, so it is supplemental for them to be able to go out and purchase those foods that they need for their families.

Yohe: So how will the provisions of the federal reconciliation bill affect West Virginia’s West Virginians who use your food services?

Kirkhart: That’s such a big question, and it’s a great question. First and foremost, we understand that some of these changes won’t come into play right now, okay, but things like the tariffs are coming into play. So those typically hit lower income families harder, because a lot of the tariffs are on products that are cheaper made in China and that type of thing. So they’re going to start feeling pinches in their income. Then when the SNAP cuts come through. A lot of that’s being pushed down to the state level, and with the state having to make some determinations about that programming, Now they’re going to have to deal with the administrative and the benefits. Governor Morrissey has a challenge, right? He’s going to have to determine how he’s going to implement and sustain that program, so the financial cuts will come to the state. Then the state’s going to have to decide who’s going to get those benefits, and Randy, we both know that it’s typically per person in the family, $6 dollars a day. Now you and I will probably be very challenged to feed a family on $6 dollars a day per person. I is equally challenging for those families. So we’re looking at higher demand for the food bank. Our food resources from the Department of Ag have been cut by a significant amount. So we’re really right now starting to look at, what can we do to feed families for the next couple of years? How will we have the resources?

That shift is coming from the federal down to the state, and the numbers are through our affiliation with Feeding America, who gathers a lot of data and was able to help us really drill down to the state level. They acknowledge how many people in the state rely on charitable food resources and rely heavily on SNAP. The unsung heroes of all of this are the folks in the communities that we serve, which, as you know, are food deserts who accept SNAP benefits. And so those stores, those employers, are also going to see cuts. So then I’m probably going to have people I haven’t seen before because they’ve lost their jobs.

Yohe: Appalachia struggles with obesity. Explain the relationship between obesity and hunger, especially with the population you serve.

Kirkhart: Such a great question. Part of the obesity issue and hunger is that unhealthy food, the things that taste really great but have little nutritional value, is less expensive. So people are trying to fill their hunger needs with foods that don’t sustain them. It’s not protein, it’s not, you know, those good quality foods. What we see is that people try and fill up on volume versus quality. If you go to Sam’s Club, you can buy a big box of those peanut butter buddy bars for, you know, $4 dollars, but you can only get, like, half a pint of blueberries for that same amount. So the choices are hard ones that we ask people to make.

Yohe: The Federal Reconciliation Bill provisions don’t really go into effect until late 2026. Does that time frame offer any chances of solving problems?

Kirkhart: I think that we have established a very positive relationship with the West Virginia Legislature, and we look forward to continuing to develop our partnership with the governor. That is our only recourse right now, how collectively can we work together to address what we understand is coming down the road? I think we’ve got great partners like Del. Evan Worrell and Speaker [Roger] Hanshaw, folks who have always understood the needs of hungry West Virginians who want people to have healthy food. So we’re hoping to parlay that into additional support to ensure that we don’t add to hungry West Virginian rosters.

Yohe: Anything else on this subject that you want to offer that I didn’t ask?

Kirkhart: I think it’s incredibly important for our members of Congress to be listening to the information that we provide to them and help us collectively as a state, address what is clearly a hunger tsunami coming down the road.