By Davin Eldridge
Contributing Writer

The economic climate in the United States has caused many low-income citizens to feel the burn of the recession, as they seek food stamps in order to feed themselves and their families. According to the USDA Food and Nutrition Service, a rising figure of 31 million Americans are receiving food assistance this fiscal year from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).

SNAP provides food assistance for households considered to be at or near poverty levels. In order to receive food stamp benefits, a person must apply at their local Department of Social Services office, and verify their resources and income with a case worker. The average monthly benefit recipients received last fiscal year was approximately $101 per person and about $227 per household, according to the USDA.

The Western North Carolina region is no exception to this trend in food requirement. In Macon County alone, 4,628 new individual cases of food and nutritional benefits were received by residents between the fiscal year of October of 2008 to October of 2009. “We expected it to be one of the most challenging years in recent history, as we had come to a crossroads in funding and service provision,” said Lisa Allen, community relations and human resources coordinator of Macon Department of Social Services (DSS).

“We actually looked at the number of people receiving benefits in October of 2008, and looked at October of 2009 this year, and there was a 23 percent increase in the number of households receiving food assistance,” reported Allen. Government statistics also indicate that the increase in the need for food has continued to rise since the beginning of the economic recession. From October of 2007 to October of 2009 there was a reported 38 percent increase in food stamp recipients.

For this fiscal year, residents in Macon County will receive an estimated $5 million in food benefits according to the Macon County DSS. The local department “anticipated” the trend according to Allen. The 11 percent unemployment rate throughout the state has contributed to this continuous rise in demand, which is a four percent increase from last year, according to an annual report by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Food and nutritional services reached $3,092,771 in expenditures, according to the 2007-2008 fiscal year reports from the Jackson County DSS. For this year it has reached $4,496,721 so far. The funding for food requirements comes from federal, state and county tax revenue.

Monthly DSS reports indicate a rising trend in Jackson County food requirement as well. From 2007-2009 the increase in food stamp recipients has risen to 16.1 percent increase. “The number of persons in need keep increasing and the dollar amounts keep going up. We haven’t been seeing any decreases so far this year [in the need for aid],” said Diane Cauley, personnel and staff trainer of Jackson County DSS.

The region is sharing the budgetary hardships of the country. Citizens in need are urged to seek assistance if they need it. “Fighting hunger and promoting nutrition” has been the goal of the USDA Food and Nutrition service for more than 40 years. “We want people to know that this service is available for them, and to them [county residents],” said Cauley.

For more information on receiving federal food assistance, contact your local Department of Social services or visit the web site at http://www.fns.usda.gov.