SPOKANE, Wash. — Sen. Patty Murray criticized the Trump administration for cutting $660 million from a federal program that connects schools and food banks with local farmers.
“Our president should not be pro hunger to billionaires should not be rewriting national hunger programs to essentially say to families, let them eat cake,” Murray said during a press conference addressing cuts to the United States Department of Agriculture.
The Local Food for Schools Program lost significant funding in the recent federal budget, according to Murray.
Haley Olson-Wailand, co-owner of Dharma Ridge Farm in Quilcene, said the cuts affect both consumers and producers.
“It was not only providing that access to our community members who needed the food, but it was also providing a direct new market for us as farmers, and it’s devastating to lose that,” Olson-Wailand said.
Caritas food bank in Spokane County now serves nearly 500 households, an increase of about 200 individuals since January, according to local reporting.
Cal Coblentz, Chief Executive Officer at Partners Inland Northwest in Spokane, said food assistance programs cannot handle any funding reductions.
“Even a 5% reduction when we’re experiencing a 60 or 70% growth in customers every year, you know, is the wrong direction,” Coblentz said.
The cuts come as food insecurity remains a significant issue across Washington state, with food banks reporting record numbers of clients while farmers lose valuable institutional customers.
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