Surviving on less than $6 a meal

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, known as SNAP, enables low-income families to put basic food on the table. This month, SNAP experienced dramatic cuts that have left many families and seniors struggling to figure out how to survive on less than $6 per meal.

That can mean cheaper, less-healthy options like canned and processed foods, which are high in sugar and are major drivers of obesity, reporter Laura Reiley tells “Post Reports.”

“It's a hunger that looks different than it used to in this country,” Reiley says.

So why the change? Amid heightened financial and food insecurity during the pandemic, a federal assistance program upped monthly SNAP benefits. That program came to a screeching halt last week, despite a continued rise in food prices. Many families and seniors are seeing their monthly food assistance drop by more than $100.

State-level shifts are also reducing the level of assistance. And yet, “the food that we routinely feed our families has gotten a lot more expensive,” Reiley continues. “The math that's been used to determine how much a meal costs has not kept up with inflation or how we eat.”

Read more:

Millions could see cuts to food stamps as federal pandemic aid ends.

A mile-long line for free food offers a warning as covid benefits end.

Republicans take aim at food stamps in growing fight over federal debt.