food insecurity

Schools around the Kansas City metro are working to connect families with food, housing and other resources to make sure kids have the support they need until they return to class in the fall. Here's where to find free meals, mental health support and more.

The Trump administration’s drive to slash safety-net spending is hitting SNAP. As the cost of gasoline spikes, rent and utilities climb and food remains expensive, more than 3.5 million Americans have lost food benefits.

Enrollment in the Kansas SNAP program declined 12% since the federal legislation was signed into law last year by President Donald Trump.

The Missouri Department of Social Services applied last year for federal permission to prohibit purchases of candy, prepared desserts and sugary drinks with SNAP and SuN Bucks. But supermarkets aren't yet clear what qualifies.

Missouri lawmakers passed a state budget that zeroes out funding for Double Up Food Bucks, which helps low-income families use SNAP to afford more fresh produce. It comes after Republican legislators pushed to limit SNAP purchases of candy and sugary drinks in order to improve nutrition.

With the costs of groceries rising and food assistance falling, community gardens can help keep healthy produce on a family's table. Hear how food banks and other groups around Kansas are growing their own.

Inflation and shrinking food assistance can have people turning to cheaper, more processed groceries. Groups across Kansas are using community gardens as a way to provide fresh vegetables.

The 2026 Kansas City Farmer’s Market Passport is your guide to 23 different markets across the metro, including what languages the farmers speak and how to care for fresh produce. Plus, residents can win prizes the more they visit.

Currently under federal law, convicted drug offenders are banned from receiving SNAP benefits. A proposed Missouri House bill would opt out of the federal ban.

Federal data found that millions of people struggled to get enough food in 2024. The report will be the final publication of such data after the U.S. Department of Agriculture said it will scrap the annual hunger survey.

Missouri submitted a waiver to the U.S. Department of Agriculture requesting to certify candy, desserts, soft drinks, and certain fruit juices as ineligible to purchase with SNAP benefits.

For the past four years, a federal program has given Missouri farmers and hungry families a boost by putting locally grown, fresh food on their tables. But the recently canceled Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement won't provide that help this year.