Press Releases

In light of the Trump Administration’s repeated actions to cut food assistance, Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine), Members of Congress, and anti-hunger advocates are demanding better policies to combat hunger in America.

Joining U.S. Senators Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Andy Kim (D-N.J.), Congressman Dan Goldman (D-N.Y.), Hunger Free America CEO Joel Berg and former U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman, and advocates at a press conference today, Pingree condemned Republicans’ and the Administration’s cuts to Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and the USDA’s decision to end a longstanding annual food insecurity survey. 

“The Trump Administration can try to bury the truth by canceling the annual food security report, spreading misinformation about SNAP fraud, and dismissing decades of research as ‘fear-mongering,’ but families across the country know all too well how real the hunger crisis is. And it’s only getting worse under Trump and Republicans, who have hollowed out the safety net and driven basic costs beyond reach,” said Pingree, Co-Chair of the Bipartisan Food Recovery Caucus. “Hunger Free America is doing what this Administration refuses to do: document the lived reality of millions of Americans with credible, independent data that exposes the crisis Republicans in power are desperate to ignore. In Congress, many of us are fighting to protect SNAP, strengthen anti-hunger programs, and invest in commonsense solutions to reduce food waste and expand access to healthy meals. We’re not backing down—no matter how hard this Administration tries to hide the reality of hunger in America.” 

Earlier this year, President Trump’s so-called “Big Beautiful Bill” cut the SNAP—the largest food assistance program in the country—by $186 billion. President Trump also refused to tap into the USDA’s contingency fund to provide SNAP benefits during the Republican government shutdown, disrupting food aid for millions of Americans.

To fill the gap created by the Administration when they ended the annual food insecurity survey, the nonpartisan nonprofit group Hunger Free America released its own survey on hunger in the U.S. The new report found that 81 percent of U.S. families earning between $75,000 to $100,000 per year—usually considered to be upper middle class—faced higher costs of living in the past year, which is why fully 64 percent of such families said it was harder for them to afford the amount and quality of food they and/or their household needed.

“Hunger Free America’s new reports show just how pervasive hunger is in our country. But instead of stepping in to help Americans, the Trump administration is doing the opposite—cutting the very programs that feed hungry families,” said Senator Gillibrand. “By cutting food aid programs like SNAP, the Trump administration is undermining a critical lifeline that nearly 3 million New Yorkers rely on to put food on the table. The administration must put the American people first and take action to curb hunger.”   

“Hunger Free America’s new study confirms what I’m hearing from people across New Jersey — costs are too high and it’s only getting harder to put food on the table,” said Senator Kim. “A trip to the grocery or the pharmacy should never break the bank. We can solve hunger, but not while the Trump administration continues to cruelly weaponize hunger as a political tool. We owe the American people better, and I look forward to working with advocates like Hunger Free America to deliver a future where hunger is a thing of the past.” 

The reports can be found here.