Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest North Carolina warns that it can’t replace the food support that would be lost under a prolonged federal government shutdown.
Second Harvest CEO Eric Aft says the agency is already dealing with record demand, and the shutdown could add to the need.
He says Second Harvest provided 40 million meals this past year. But the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, also known as SNAP, provides nine meals for every one from food banks.
“We will do our best to fill that gap," he says. "But it is simply not realistic for us to be able to provide nine times the meals that we're currently providing.”
Aft says the organization will have to quickly dip into its limited reserves to address the possible new demand.
Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest North Carolina serves 18 area counties.
