SOFSA’s Director, Maura Ackerman, was recently interviewed in an article highlighting the end to the Emergency Allotment program that added an additional $90 per month to households receiving SNAP benefits. The article talks with several local experts who emphasize the necessity of extending these extra benefits to Syracuse, where over 30% of shoppers use SNAP to buy groceries.

The article highlights the Syracuse Cooperative Market, where SOFSA Advisory Board member Jeremy DeChario is General Manager. Syracuse Cooperative Market is a participant in the Double Up Food Bucks program that offers a dollar for dollar match on SNAP produce purchases. Promotion of and support for nutrition assistance programs is a policy priority for SOFSA in 2023 — read more on our Policy Platform.

Read the article on the Daily Orange:

“​​We know that parents, by virtue of trying to protect their children, are the first to experience food insecurity,” Ackerman said. “They are more likely to skip meals or reduce their caloric intake or reduce the quality of food that they eat, so that they can preserve their children’s ability to eat.”

– Maura Ackerman, SOFSA Director