SNAP reduction increases hunger

Thank you for your comprehensive report, “Red Bank Hunger Panel Provides Food for Thought” (Independent, Oct. 10), on the recent Soul of Hunger discussion of hunger in New Jersey.

Your piece captured the struggle that hundreds of thousands of New Jerseyans face daily to provide for their families and put healthy food on the table during these continuing and difficult economic times.

These are veterans, the sick, the recently laid-off, the working poor and their children.

Today, more than 863,000 New Jerseyans receive help from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as food stamps.

Both Monmouth and Ocean counties have seen substantial increases in families participating in SNAP.

But, as you noted, there are many more who are eligible for assistance but are not getting it.

Those who do get help are about to receive a cut in their meager $4.50-per-day SNAP benefit, with greater pain predicted in the near future. A temporary SNAP boost is set to end on Nov. 1, which will mean a family of four will lose $36 a year, bringing the average benefit to less than $1.40 per meal.

The House wants to slash SNAP by $40 billion, cutting 4 million people from the program in just the first year of the reduction. Some of those would be needy New Jerseyans.

Your article ended on a hopeful note, with a 12-year-old saying she plans to get more involved in the fight against hunger.

That’s a pledge every New Jerseyan should make. Calling congressional representatives and urging them not to cut SNAP is a good start. Adele LaTourette Director New Jersey Anti-Hunger

Coalition

Trenton