Page 2 - Kellie Oconnell News Today

Since early in the pandemic, families in Illinois have received emergency SNAP allotments on top of their typical benefits. In March, benefits will return to their pre-pandemic levels.

Food pantries are bracing for an increase of demand and organizations are urging SNAP beneficiaries to update their information to potentially help offset the loss of funds.

The need is heightened this week as people get Thanksgiving turkeys and ham along with regular supplies.

Regina Head usually cooks her Thanksgiving turkey until its so tender it can melt in your mouth. This year, shes considering deep frying her bird, which shell serve to her three daughters, who range in age from 8 to 16.

As inflated production costs increase prices up and down the grocery aisle, the turkey industry has been served a double whammy with the avian flu, a respiratory virus that has led to the deaths of more than 8 million turkeys in the U.S, according to the U.S Department of Agriculture.

Families are reaching out to assistance groups and pantries for help

From Phoenix, Arizona, in the southwest United States, to Jackson, Mississippi, in the southeast U.S., people are waiting in long lines in their vehicles to receive food assistance from food banks and mobile pantries. Soaring inflation in the U.S. is raising the price of everything from food to gas to rent. And that's been making…

A longtime North Side food pantry is growing and changing Friday in order to serve more people in Chicago.

Lakeview Pantry is changing its name to Nourishing Hope and opening a new headquarters it says will help it better serve Chicagoans on the South and West sides.

Food pantries across the city said they are seeing increased demand as dollars don’t stretch as far at the supermarket and people feel the pinch on the price of everything