Hunger Task Force Prepares for Lapse in Federal Food Assistance

Eastbrook Church Food Pantry, 5385 N. Green Bay Ave. Photo courtesy of Hunger Task Force.

Hunger Task Force is preparing for an impending lapse in federal food assistance payments for low-income families in Milwaukee that is expected to cause increased demand for local food pantries.

FoodShare, the state food stamp program, will pause payments on Nov. 1 as a result of the ongoing federal government shutdown. The program, which is funded through the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), will run out of funding on Oct. 31.

At this point, regardless of when the shutdown ends, there will likely be some delay in November FoodShare payments, said Matt King, CEO of Hunger Task Force, an area food bank that provides food free of charge to local pantries, shelters and meal programs. To make funding available by Nov. 1 there are processes that needed to have started already, he said

FoodShare isn’t intended to be a family’s sole source of food and groceries, but it is the “most critical tool” available for fighting hunger, King said.

When payments stop, or are delayed, people have to choose between paying rent or buying fewer groceries, he said. “So, for a lot of parents, they end up cutting back on meals, skipping meals, and in many cases looking to a food pantry to just help them get through the month.”

Many families will turn to food pantries for assistance, putting a strain on a pantry system that has already been seeing rising demand in recent years, King said. Since 2022, food pantry visits have increased 30%, according to Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin.

Hunger Task Force has been preparing for the eventual spike in need across the pantry system by purchasing additional food.

“We’re prepared to fulfill emergency orders for local food pantries,” King said.

There were 236,000 Milwaukee County residents enrolled in FoodShare as of September, according to data from the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS).

FoodShare recipients who still have balances on their accounts should consider stocking up on non-perishable items ahead of Nov. 1, according to DHS. As the system runs out of funding, even existing balances may not be paid out.

Gov. Tony Evers has written to USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins urging the agency to transfer funds into SNAP to keep the program solvent through November. Health care programs like Medicare are being maintained through the shutdown, and the USDA has said it will use tariff revenue to fund WIC, a supplemental nutrition program for women, infants and children.

Evers is calling on President Donald Trump‘s administration to similarly “use every legal administrative option available to it to maintain food security and continuity in Wisconsin and to develop immediate solutions to mitigate any preventable lapse in providing basic necessities like food and groceries to kids, families, veterans, and seniors across our state.”