The Silent Squeeze:

March 7 | Peter F. Crescenti

If you monitor the news closely, you may have seen recent stories by Newsday reporter Olivia Winslow and CBS New York’s Long Island reporter Jennifer McLogan – both of which covered rising food costs and how that is creating more debt for Long Islanders struggling to put enough food on the table.

There are two main concerns: What potential tariffs on Mexico, Canada and China may mean regarding food prices, and how will the White House and Congress’s visions for the future of SNAP benefits affect food-insecure Americans.

When it comes to food, tariffs traditionally affect fresh produce most. Experts point to fruits and vegetables such as avocados, tomatoes, strawberries, cucumbers, bananas, squash, spinach and more as being much more costly. Meat imports from Canada may rise as well.

Of course, food banks such as Long Island Cares and food pantries, soup kitchens, shelters and other resources offering no-cost food play a crucial role in blunting the impact tariffs would have on our 280,000 food-insecure Long Islanders – 45,000 of whom are children.

But as more and more of our neighbors slide into debt pressure – 85% of those surveyed by No Kid Hungry New York said that food prices are rising faster than their income – food banks become more important than ever.

But at the same time, scores of thousands of Long Islanders who gladly give back to help feed their food-insecure neighbors are feeling the pinch, too. Long Island Cares CEO Paule Pachter told McLogan that the inevitable impact is a reduction in the amount and frequency of donations.

“Inflation or additional tariffs placed on goods that we have to pay for as consumers means that people are not going to be giving as much as they’ve given in the past.”

From another perspective, there are those who fear there will be pressure from the Senate to cut back on funding or reduce access to SNAP benefits (food stamps). The SNAP situation on Long Island is already burdensome, given the income-level rules that eliminate many families and individuals whose overall income exceeds the unrealistically low levels that rule the program nationwide.

Here are the income levels for up to a family of four, that if exceeded disqualify you from SNAP:

* These figures are based upon SNAP standards effective October 1, 2024.

In other words, the income cutoff level is much less likely to affect the food insecure in Jackson, Mississippi or Provost, Utah than in Freeport or Hampton Bays. We have full-service food pantries in both towns, so we witness firsthand the need driven by high grocery prices and income disqualification for SNAP.

Is there a way out of this mess? Well, in the No Kid Hungry New York poll, 77 % of those Long Islanders polled agreed that “ending childhood hunger in New York should be a shared, bipartisan goal.” It would be a huge step forward – but one which desperately needs federal support, too.

Are you listening, elected officials across the U.S.A.?

Peter F. Crescenti, Media Relations Specialist