CHICAGO - More than 1.8 million people in Illinois rely on SNAP, also known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, to help purchase groceries.

However, the Big Beautiful Bill Act will directly impact those benefits and related farm subsidies. The Illinois Department of Human Services estimates that 360,000 people are at risk of losing SNAP eligibility.

What we know:

With SNAP cuts and the cost of groceries rising in recent years, Chicago-area food banks and pantries are scrambling to prepare for even more demand.

At the height of the pandemic, SNAP lifted 4.2 million people in the U.S. above the poverty line, and it reduced poverty by 10% and cut child poverty by 14%.

"SNAP is a nutritional lifeline for millions of families in the U.S.," said Greater Chicago Food Depo

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