U.S. Senator Schumer joins FeedMore WNY, hunger-relief partners to oppose federal funding cuts to anti-hunger programs

FeedMore WNY welcomed U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer and several of our hunger-relief partners, including faith leaders, at our food bank distribution warehouse today to talk about the critical role that federal funding plays in alleviating food insecurity across the nation and here in Western New York.

In his remarks, Senator Schumer called for a reversal of the cuts made to anti-hunger programs, like the recent cancelation of TEFAP food purchases funded by the Commodity Credit Corporation. TEFAP, which is short for The Emergency Food Assistance Program, is a federal program that provides nutritional assistance to help low-income individuals and families.

For FeedMore WNY, the cancelation to TEFAP CCC will result in the loss of roughly $3.5 million in high value staples, like frozen proteins, that our partner food pantries rely on to nourish community members.

Senator Schumer also called on Congress to protect the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). SNAP is the first line of defense against hunger and helps nearly 3 million New Yorkers to purchase nutritious food from grocery stores and farmers markets. Those purchases support the local economy and area farmers.

“We should be investing more, not less, in anti-hunger programs,” Senator Schumer said in a statement, calling the cancelation of federal funding for hunger-relief programs and proposed cuts to SNAP a “double whammy that could hurtle families to a hunger crisis.”

Collin Bishop, chief communications officer for FeedMore WNY, spoke of how programs like SNAP and TEFAP work in tandem to provide a nutritional safety net for food-insecure Western New Yorkers.

“That’s why a cut to any feeding program amounts to a cut to all of them,” Bishop said, adding that reductions in SNAP would increase the burden on the already-strained charitable food assistance network.

In addition to the loss of TEFAP CCC funding, Bishop also shared that funds FeedMore WNY received through a federal program called the Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement (LFPA) will not be renewed. Through LFPA, FeedMore WNY received $2 million for food purchases from local farms. Furthermore, roughly $200 thousand dollars that FeedMore WNY receives through FEMA to purchase food is currently frozen.

“Altogether, that’s nearly $6 million, out of the $14.9 million in federal funding we received last year, that we are losing or may lose,” Bishop said.

These cuts have come at a time when the need for food assistance continues to grow in Western New York. In 2024, FeedMore WNY assisted 165,700 individuals, which was a 16 percent increase from the prior year and a 46 percent increase in just three years’ time.

“We hope for a day when we do not need millions of dollars in funding because the need in the community is lower – but that day is not today,” Bishop said. “It’s imperative that the federal government continue to fund and support food assistance programs including SNAP, TEFAP and Meals on Wheels. Any reduction or elimination of these vital funds has a devastating effect on the charitable food assistance network and further exacerbates the already massive problem of hunger in WNY and throughout the nation.”

U.S. Senator Schumer speaks about the importance of federal funding for food assistance programs during a May 12, 2025 press conference at FeedMore WNY’s warehouse.


FeedMore WNY staff stand with U.S. Senator Schumer and several partner food pantries and hunger-relief advocates during the May 12 press conference.