National 211 hotline calls for food assistance quadrupled in a matter of days, a magnitude typically seen during disasters

Sharp spikes in calls for food assistance are rare outside of natural disasters. AP Photo/Eric Gay

Between January and mid-October 2025, calls to local 211 helplines from people seeking food pantries in their community held steady at nearly 1,000 calls per day.

But as the government shutdown entered its fourth week in late October, states began to warn residents that Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits, sometimes known as food stamps, would likely be affected. Nearly 42 million Americans receive SNAP benefits each month.