Democracy Dies in Darkness
Social Issues

Local families face ‘hunger cliff’ as pandemic-era food assistance ends

On March 1, the federal government’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) will stop a temporary boost in payments for tens of millions of Americans

By
February 21, 2023 at 6:18 p.m. EST
Chanahvia Hall, 36, a Falls Church mother of eight, shops at Food for Others, stocking up on food before she loses nearly $600 in monthly SNAP benefits on March 1. (Kyle Swenson/The Washington Post)
5 min

As she nudged a shopping cart down the aisle, passing free bags of potatoes and melons, Chanahvia Hall, 36, mentally scrolled through her shopping list.

The kids loved apple sauce. Her youngest now was obsessed with bananas. Fresh bread was always a treat in the house. She preferred nutritious options like the items spilling from the shelves and freezers here at Food for Others, a Fairfax food bank. With eight kids, ages 2 to 15, the Falls Church single mother figured it cost $200 in food a week to keep the family going — a strain on the household budget that made regular trips to the free pantry necessary.