Sacramento Food Banks Face Crisis as Federal, State Funding Slashed

SACRAMENTO — The At both the state and the federal level, food banks are going to experience significant reductions in funding.

In the year 2024, the Sacramento Food Bank and Family Services served around forty million pounds of food to the community. As someone who obtains her groceries from the food bank, Susana Liston describes it as a “lifeline” for a great number of people.

She is able to stock up on free gasoline at this location, which would allow her to feel her best.

“It means surviving, being healthy and being able to eat,” Liston explained to reporters.

Now, thousands of people in Sacramento may be at risk of having their shopping carts and stomachs stuffed with food as a result of significant funding cuts.

A statement was made by Kevin Buffalino, the director of communications for the Sacramento Food Bank and Family Services. “We had 400,000 pounds of food that we had already ordered and expected to receive from that program, 11 truckloads that are no longer going to be showing up,” Buffalino said.

Buffalino stated that the United States Department of Agriculture program that had been responsible for delivering 1.4 million pounds of food to Sacramento in the previous year was terminated by the federal government.

“By the end of this year, we had already reached that point. He stated that it was one million pounds.

Other amounts that were allocated during the administration of Vice President Joe Biden are also being reduced by the Trump White House. The $2.3 million that the Sacramento Food Bank was given is scheduled to expire in July of 2026.

There has been a major reduction in funding for the CalFood program, which has gone from sixty million dollars to eight million dollars in the state budget. On an annual basis, the Sacramento food bank received over $2 million; however, according to Buffalino, they will return to receiving between $200,000 and $250,000.

When compared to the number of people it fed before the epidemic, the food bank now provides sustenance to 310,000 people on a monthly basis.

According to Buffalino, he is thankful for the support they receive from the community and will have to rely even more on the contributions and volunteers from the local community.

“There is nothing more important to me than feeding our local community, so I have been a donor for years,” said Sharon Hamer, who was helping at the food bank for the first time with her sister-in-law. “I have been a donor for years.”

According to Buffalino, the cuts will not result in the closure of the establishment; nonetheless, they may result in a reduction in the amount of food and the diversity of options available in the next year.
Liston stated, “I don’t even want to think about it,” and he was right. “It is stressful and it is sad.”

Stephanie Nguyen, a member of the local assembly, is in the forefront of the movement to increase the amount of state support offered by CalFood. For the purpose of bringing the entire amount back up to $60 million, she is calling for an additional financing of $52 million.

Her office sent CBS13 this statement:

“Cutting funding to food banks isn’t just a budget decision – it’s a moral one. At a time when so many families are struggling to put food on the table, we should be strengthening our support systems, not weakening them. That’s why I am leading the charge to restore funding to California’s food banks, which face devastating cuts both at the state and federal level.”

“Unless we act, state funding for food banks will reduce by nearly 90%. Most food banks will need to limit the amount of food offered or close existing distribution sites entirely. Unexpected federal cuts have also put a strain on our food banks – leaving a trail of uncertainty across the state and the nation. Just in Sacramento alone, 11 truckloads (about 400,000 pounds) of food have already been cancelled due to federal cuts. Now more than ever, is when we need to ensure that our food banks are fully operational, and they have the funding that is needed to be able to continue to serve these families.”