No SNAP? How to help fellow Iowans who are struggling for food

Well, it happened: SNAP benefits ended Nov. 1 for 42 million Americans for the very first time in history. That includes 267,000 Iowans, 40% of whom are children, going without their grocery money this week.

It’s because of the ongoing federal government shutdown, now the longest in history. Democrats won’t vote to end the shutdown without extending healthcare subsidies that keep ACA payments low, but Republicans so far say they won’t do that, so there’s no end in sight.

The sorta good news: A court said President Donald Trump couldn’t just not pay SNAP. So he promised a federal court that the USDA will pay what’s left in a contingency fund, or just over half the November benefits. (Trump later posted on social media that he would not do even that, but his spokesperson later said they would comply with the court order.)

And, on Thursday, the judge told him he has to find ALL of the November money.

No matter how it eventually shakes out, payments won’t arrive immediately. States like Iowa will have to calculate how much of the benefits to send out before they can be loaded onto EBT cards.

Waiting weeks—or even months—for those benefits could mean real harm to everyone from pregnant women to Indigenous communities.

So what’s being done to help Iowans from starving?

A photo of a sign at Great Harvest Bread Company in Cedar Rapids, taken during the federal government shutdown in October 2025, that reads, “Shutdown Shelf: If you or a neighbor are out of a paycheck because of the federal shutdown and need some help, please take a FREE loaf from this rack.”(Reader submitted)

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, who has supported cuts to SNAP, announced this week the state would donate “up to $1 million” to six Iowa food banks from the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services.

The catch? It’s a donation match, meaning food banks have to raise extra money to qualify. And it’s limited to the number of SNAP recipients each food bank serves.

As Ed Tibbetts pointed out, even if the entire $1 million was given, it amounts to less than one day of SNAP funding needed in Iowa. And state Democrats say there’s way more that could be done.

“The state has $107 million in earned interest from the State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund that the governor can use right now to cover the SNAP shortfall caused by the federal shutdown,” said House Democratic Leader Rep. Brian Meyer of Des Moines. “Families are already struggling to make ends meet, and this is a simple, realistic way to keep Iowans fed during this crisis.”

“In addition, we urge the attorney general to immediately join 25 other states in a federal lawsuit compelling the USDA to fulfill its obligations to use emergency contingency funds to provide federal SNAP coverage during the shutdown,” added Senate Democratic Leader Janice Weiner of Iowa City.

It’s a tall order for states, even with help from companies and nonprofits, to backfill the $8 billion per month needed for SNAP. Desperate Iowans are turning out in record amounts to food banks.

But even though we cannot do everything, we can do something. And Iowans are stepping up.

Donate: Iowa City Catholic Worker is raising emergency food assistance funds. A Gofundme was set up for an Emergency Double Up Food Bucks fund for fresh fruits and vegetables for Iowans. There’s also a fund for restaurant and service workers, who are overwhelmingly represented in SNAP recipients.

Share news about those donating for your neighbors in need:

• Hy-Vee stores are offering free meals to children 12 and under this week.
• Meals from the Heartland announced they will donate an additional 1 million meals to Iowa food banks.
• Big Grove Brewery is donating $12,000 to three Iowa food banks.
• The Iowa Pork Producers and Fareway Stores are jointly donating 9,500 pounds of ground pork to Iowa and Nebraska food banks.
• A reader sent me the above photo from Great Harvest Bread Company, a bakery in Cedar Rapids, offering free loaves of bread.
• Yonderbound, a Des Moines small business that makes THC and CBD powder, said it is donating 100% of its proceeds this week to the Food Bank of Iowa. “We’re a new company, and it’s just the two of us—so we know our efforts won’t fix systemic issues or refill every empty pantry,” the husband-and-wife team wrote to Iowa Starting Line. “But food insecurity is not something we can shrug off.”

Pressure your elected officials: Linn County supervisors voted to donate $80,000 to help their food bank’s matching fund. You can also email your congresspeople and tell them to stop stalling and reopen the government.

Have you seen other examples of generosity in your community? Email me.