News & Updates

“The Ohio Association of Foodbanks and our members are grateful to Senator Husted for his co-sponsorship of the Delivering for Rural Seniors Act. Ohio’s foodbanks, in partnership with USDA and the State of Ohio, proudly operate CSFP to connect about 30,000 seniors with nourishing staple foods every month. This legislation would help us make sure that seniors in need, especially those in rural Ohio, where service delivery is often more challenging, can have healthy food, and hope, delivered to their doorstep. We look forward to partnering with Senator Husted on this impactful bill,” said Joree Novotny, executive director, Ohio Association of Foodbanks.

“On behalf of the nearly 1.5 million Ohioans – primarily families with children, seniors, and disabled Ohioans – that count on Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits to help meet their monthly food needs, we thank Ohio Governor Mike DeWine, Ohio Senate President Rob McColley, Ohio House Speaker Matt Huffman, members of the Ohio General Assembly, and our partners at the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services for today’s announcement to provide support for food assistance to help families impacted by the federal government shutdown.

“This meaningful stop-gap funding will assist our statewide foodbank network with its ongoing crisis response and provide additional direct assistance to families with children with very limited resources. The $7 million directed toward foodbanks will help to replenish the food supply we have that is being rapidly depleted.

“Many corporate and retail partners, community foundations, city and county officials, and individual donors have extended support directly to families and to our hunger relief network as we respond to the impact of the shutdown on the frontlines, and we want to also extend our gratitude for their collective support.

“We agree with Governor DeWine that these responses and emergency funds are not a viable, long-term solution. Thank you to our partners at the State of Ohio for identifying resources to support responsive, short-term relief. We want to thank members of Ohio’s congressional delegation for efforts to continue funding for SNAP during the shutdown, including U.S. Senators Husted and Moreno for their co-sponsorship of the Keep SNAP Funded Act of 2025.

“For individuals facing food budget shortfalls who need to locate emergency help with food, please visit ohiofoodbanks.org to Find Your Foodbank and search for food distributions near you. Thank you to the volunteers and helping hands that continue to give of their time in support of their fellow Ohioans as we work together to meet this moment.”

“With the first federal paychecks missed and the shutdown stretching into a third week, Ohio’s foodbanks and local hunger relief partners are working hard to respond to gaps that federal workers are facing. At the same time, we are focused on remaining available to the tens of thousands of Ohioans that turn to our network for help each day when they face budget shortfalls.

“Foodbanks have existed for more than five decades to help families and those in need respond to food shortages. In times of economic disruption and natural disasters, foodbanks serve as key public-private partners working with local food pantries and meal programs to keep food on the table and households stable. As we navigate this shutdown day by day, we continue to communicate with our state agency partners to better understand the impact government-funded assistance programs may face if the shutdown is prolonged. While we stand ready to assist those affected, our resources are already stretched thin, with an average of 1.4 million Ohioans visiting our food pantries each month, and a prolonged shutdown will add strain on our network.

“We are counting on our donors, supporters and communities to step up in any way they can as our network continues its response. This situation underscores the vital role of public-private partnerships in supporting working families. Our partnerships with the USDA and the State of Ohio help support farmers and producers when they face market challenges, while also ensuring Ohio families are nourished. We maximize those partnerships through the power of charitable and corporate giving and local volunteerism. The collective generosity of Ohioans in this moment is essential in supporting our mission — not only in this shutdown season, but as we approach the winter months and holiday season ahead.”

Since the nutrition education program known as "SNAP-Ed" ended as part of federal budget cuts, food banks across Ohio are adjusting how they help people stretch food budgets and manage diet-related health needs.

Some are having hands-on cooking and nutrition classes, especially for older people on fixed incomes. At Second Harvest Food Bank of Champaign, Clark and Logan Counties, the staff has expanded their cooking classes to local senior centers, focusing on meals built around foods seniors receive through assistance programs.

Natasha Ridenour, outreach specialist for the food bank, said the classes grew out of the Commodity Supplemental Food Program, which provides monthly boxes of shelf-stable foods to eligible seniors.

"We wanted to be able to go in to our seniors and say, 'We can teach you how to make simple, easy, less costly meals.' And we based it off of our CSFP commodity box," she said.

A winter storm halted food deliveries across parts of Ohio this week, complicating efforts to reach seniors, children and families who rely on meal programs to get through the day.

As icy roads forced schools and food pantries to close, food assistance organizations scrambled to adapt and keep food moving.

The end of the reimbursement program has coincided with one of the worst years in recent memory for hunger. Federal cuts to the Emergency Food Assistance Program has meant fewer resources for food banks. At the same time, rising food prices has led to increased demand.

Grocery costs are up nearly 30% since 2020, according to reporting from NPR.

Now, Hope Lane-Gavin with the Ohio Association of Food Banks says food organizations across the state are seeing victims of SNAP theft in their already long lines.

“Every record that you can possibly think about food banks, we've been hitting it tenfold,” Lane-Gavin said.

The Ohio Association of Foodbanks (OAF) is Ohio’s largest charitable hunger-relief network, representing 12 Feeding America foodbanks and 3,600 hunger relief agencies statewide. OAF’s mission centers on addressing hunger as a symptom of poverty by connecting people to food and essential resources, including SNAP, HEAP, and health coverage through Medicare, Medicaid, and the Federally Facilitated Marketplace.

OAF has a long history of outreach and enrollment work and previously served as a Navigator for the Federally Facilitated Marketplace from 2013–2017. In 2021, OAF reengaged as a Navigator grantee, rebuilding and expanding its consortium to better meet Ohio’s diverse community needs.

To improve reach and enrollment across the state, OAF focused its Navigator role on both direct consumer enrollment assistance and administrative support for trusted, community-based partner organizations. By leveraging its statewide foodbank network, community presence, and program administration expertise, OAF successfully reestablished and expanded its Navigator program—strengthening access to affordable health coverage for Ohioans alongside critical nutrition support.

Strengthening Ohio Communities Through Food, Learning and Health: A Glimpse into Nutrition Education and Food is Medicine in Ohio’s Hunger Relief Network

The Ohio Association of Foodbanks partnered with the Alpaugh Family Economics Center at the University of Cincinnati to evaluate the economic, fiscal, and community impacts of its 12 Feeding America foodbanks across Ohio. This study assessed direct, indirect, and induced effects of foodbank operations on jobs, earnings, state tax revenue, and more. We thank the Economics Center for their expertise and research, which was conducted using fiscal year 2023 data. Full report available upon request.