Tina Ruiz has been turning more to food pantries to provide food for her family recently. The 58-year-old Kane County resident is currently without access to SNAP.

She is eating more soup these days.

“Ramen noodles, things like that,” she said. “Things that the pantry gives us.”

Amid funding uncertainty and eligibility changes for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, commonly known as SNAP or food stamps, a number of Kane County-area elected officials and food pantry leaders spoke on Friday at the Northern Illinois Food Bank about their concerns over food insecurity in the area.

The discussion comes on the day President Donald Trump’s administration was ordered to distribute November’s full monthly SNAP benefits amid the U.S. government shutdown.

The Trump administration

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