<body><div><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=4L7aF6_1GrEi3Pz00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=4L7aF6_1GrEi3Pz00" width="1280" height="720" >LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Food pantries in Louisville are seeing rising demand as changes to SNAP eligibility, inflation and higher fuel costs put pressure on families and the organizations working to help them.At the Sister Visitor Center in west Louisville, people come in for groceries and other assistance. The center operates a grocery store-style food pantry and offers emergency financial assistance.“We’ve seen a 23% increase in individuals coming once a month. We’ve seen a 77% increase in those people coming every week,” Sister Paris Slapikas, director of the Sister Visitor Center, said.Slapikas said the center served nearly 3,000 people last month, up a few hundred from September. She said the need continues to rise while the amount of food available to distribute is shrinking.“Because we have less food to provide to them. So that gap of people coming is getting bigger and bigger, and the food supply that we have to offer is getting smaller and smaller. So that’s one of the main challenges that we have,” Slapikas said.Kyanna Williams, who receives SNAP benefits, said she has been coming to the center for about four years.“Yeah, this is the best neighbors that I can ever have,” Williams said.Williams said the $24 she receives each month in SNAP benefits does not go far.Retiree Larry Fennessee also relies on the pantry.“I come today just because I need a little bit of food. I ran out of food and everything and they helped me out. My money don’t come in as good as it should,” Fennessee said.The issue extends beyond the West End. Dare to Care operates in 13 counties, and its more than 400 partners are facing similar challenges.Vincent James, CEO of Dare to Care food bank, said one issue is a reduction in federal food donations.“We’re down about 300 million pounds from federal commodities. That’s a significant amount,” James said.James said higher fuel costs are also affecting food banks.“It’s forcing us to have to pay more for the same product that we were getting, and we were paying less for a year ago,” James said.James expects the strain to grow as SNAP changes affect families.Slapikas said it costs the Sister Visitor Center about $16,000 a month to purchase products. She said the rising cost reflects the growing number of people turning to places like the center for help.As of September, 546,000 Kentuckians received SNAP benefits. That is down roughly 100,000 people compared with a year ago.</div></body>

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LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Food pantries in Louisville are seeing rising demand as changes to SNAP eligibility, inflation and higher fuel costs put pressure on families and the organizations working to help them. At the Sister Visitor Center in west Louisville, people come in for groceries and other assistance. The...

Food pantries see rising demand amid SNAP changes

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LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Food pantries in Louisville are seeing rising demand as changes to SNAP eligibility, inflation and higher fuel costs put pressure on fami

Food pantries see rising demand amid SNAP changes

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