The monthly CalFresh emergency benefits issued during the pandemic have come to an end, meaning more than 15,000 households in San Luis Obispo County will have less money for groceries beginning in April. The SLO Food Bank is preparing for an increased demand for their services.
Venessa Rodriguez is the CalFresh Outreach Manager for the SLO Food Bank.
“CalFresh is the supplemental nutrition assistance program. It provides money to pay for groceries through a monthly allowance in the form of a CalFresh EBT card. This can be used like a debit card at participating grocery stores and Farmers’ Markets,” Rodriguez said.
CalFresh is a federally-funded, state-supervised food assistance program for low-income individuals and families. It’s known as SNAP on the federal level.
Rodriguez said when the pandemic hit in 2020, the government began issuing additional benefits to all eligible CalFresh recipients.
“Prior to the pandemic, if a person only qualified for the minimum, they would receive $23. With emergency allotments, it was bringing them up to that maximum amount of $281,” she said.
Rodriguez said as the program returns to regular status, CalFresh recipients will find themselves with less money for groceries at a time when prices are high.
“The price of food is expensive so it’s a lot to be going from, for example, $281 back to $23 especially with the cost of inflation,” she said.
Andrea Keisler is the Community Programs Director at the SLO Food Bank. Keisler said the change in benefits is worrisome since there’s been a steady increase in the need for Food Bank services before the extra benefits expired.
“Over the course of the last four months, we’ve seen about a 16% increase in the number of households that we’ve been serving when you compare it to the same time frame last year,” she said.
Keisler said the Food Bank and its many local partners are proactively preparing for an increased need for food throughout the county.
“We’re in the process of looking at different ways of procuring more food, so that our inventory stays stable,” Keisler said.
CalFresh is still a strong program, she said, even without the extra benefits. She said it provides assistance for food and other resources, too – like help with utility bills.
“These programs can be used simultaneously, so someone can be signed up for CalFresh benefits and receive that monthly allotment, and also come to Food Bank sites,” she said.
Keisler said if you want to donate to the Food Bank, cash is preferable since it allows them to buy in bulk and acquire essential items that are in high demand.
More information about CalFresh is on the Food Bank website: slofoodbank.org.
