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.”

A bipartisan effort to enhance security in Ohio’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program — commonly called food stamps — is underway in the Ohio House with broad support from interested parties.

House Bill 163, heading toward its sixth hearing, has a simple premise: replace the current model of Ohio’s electronic benefit transfer SNAP cards with a model equipped with the security chip that has become commonplace on credit and debit cards.

Bill sponsors — Rep. Kellie Deeter, R-Norwalk, and Rep. Tristan Rader, D-Lakewood — say that doing so would help cut down on how much money is lost to fraud within the federally funded, state-administered SNAP program.

For four years, Kimberly Dudley has worked on the front line of the Affordable Care Act as a navigator, helping Ohioans solve the puzzle of buying private insurance on the federal HealthCare.gov marketplace.

But the job is harder now, the answers scarcer. In one of its first acts, the second Trump administration cut annual funding for navigators by 90%, from $100 million to $10 million, arguing the program was wasteful. Under the ACA, better known as Obamacare, navigators help educate and enroll people — especially those living in hard-to-reach communities. They were paid through a user fee on monthly premiums.

In January 2025, 50 navigators served Ohio’s 88 counties, toting their laptops to meet Ohioans at rural libraries and suburban food courts to help them search for a health care plan on the marketplace. But by the Nov. 1 start of open enrollment, the busiest time of year, only five navigators remained. Dudley, of Cincinnati, is one of them.

Local and state leaders gathered Feb. 13 at Second Harvest Food Bank of North Central Ohio, 5510 Baumhart Road in Lorain, for its annual Legislative Service Day, an event designed to connect public policy with the realities of food insecurity across the region.

The event brought together lawmakers, health care leaders and community partners for a panel discussion centered on “Food is Medicine” initiatives.

After the discussion, officials moved into the warehouse to sort and pack food boxes for families across Crawford, Erie, Huron and Lorain counties.

Among the legislators in attendance were Lorain Mayor Jack Bradley and state Rep. Joe Miller.

Ohio Food Recovery’s 2025 Impact Report addresses the issue of food waste, defined as safe, edible food that is discarded instead of eaten. This waste occurs at many points across the food system, including homes, farms, grocery stores, restaurants, and manufacturing facilities. Common causes include produce that does not meet cosmetic standards, food nearing sell‑by or expiration dates, overproduction, and rejected or distressed food loads. Foodbanks play an essential role in addressing this challenge by working with local partners and farms, retailers, manufacturers, restaurants, and distributors to rescue and redistribute surplus food that would otherwise go to waste across all of Ohio's 88 counties. We are pleased to have coordinated with the Ohio Department of Health and local food recovery partners on this report.

The Ohio Association of Foodbanks is pleased to present this Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP) Cookbook. This book highlights special recipes from Celebrate Your Plate, utilizing CSFP focused ingredients to make simple and delicious meals, to nourish yo

Here you can find the methodology and sources for our 2026 County Fact Sheets.