Chicopee, MASS--Roughly 113,000 western Massachusetts residents rely on SNAP benefits and as concerns around looming federal budget cuts grow bigger, the area’s food bank said they worry it could have an impact on the most vulnerable of families.

“These cuts would be extremely detrimental to households. This would mean they would no longer be able to put enough food on the table to be able to feed their family,” Food Bank of Western Massachusetts executive director, Andrew Morehouse, said. 

Morehouse said the budget proposed by House republicans includes steep public assistance cuts and it could impact the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. The program helps low and no-income families buy groceries and a cut could lead to a decrease in benefits. 

“SNAP is like the pillar of federal protection. A safety net for food security across the country and it has been for almost 100 years,” Morehouse said. 

Morehouse said benefits now equal about $6.54 a day. Nationally, for every one meal a food bank provides, SNAP provides nine meals. 

“Over 50 percent of all individuals who receive SNAP benefits are children and elders and people living with disabilities, so they would have no other recourse than to go to their local food pantry to seek out food assistance and that’s the job of the food bank,” he said. 

The food bank is already operating at a record high. It supports nearly 200 pantries, meal sites and shelters across the region and provides more than 1.2 million meals every month.

“We’ll continue to source more food and reach out to the community to private food retailers and farmers and wholesalers but that won’t cut it because they have a limit as well, “ Morehouse said. “Food prices are hitting everyone hard.”

Morehouse is now urging lawmakers to protect this federal funding and avoid adding more strain on food banks across the country.

“We can get through this if we all work together and support those who need it most because they count on us,’ Morehouse said.