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On Tuesday, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins told Fox Business that 4.3-million Americans have lost food assistance through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, claiming the reduction in benefits is due to a crackdown on fraud. 

As food banks in Colorado and across the nation face new strains on their services, they’re asking neighbors to step in and help.

Mark Weslar, director of food sourcing at Food Bank of the Rockies, which distributes 200,000 meals' worth of food each day across Colorado and Wyoming, said they’ve seen a huge spike in demand. He noted that one in eight Coloradans – and one in seven children – don’t know where their next meal will come from.

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"People from all walks of life are struggling to make ends meet, especially with gas being what it is," he said. "Food, clothes, everything seems astronomically expensive now, and folks are having to make hard choices."

According to the government’s own data, fraud accounts for just 1% of the SNAP program. The vast majority of people lost SNAP benefits after the passage of the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act," which created additional work requirements and other restrictions. The Republicans’ signature tax and spending law aims to cut SNAP funding by 20%, or $186 billion, over the next decade.

Work requirements don’t help people land jobs that pay a living wage, according to new research by the Hamilton Project, but they do decrease SNAP participation. Weslar said SNAP has been the most effective anti-hunger program in the nation’s history, and food banks and pantries alone can’t fill in the gaps when people lose benefits.

"The SNAP program is vitally important," he said. "For every one meal that a food bank provides, the SNAP program provides nine meals."

Feeding America’s network of 200 food banks provides more than $4 billion meals a year to some 37 million Americans. They’re encouraging people to purchase select food items at participating Walmart and Sam’s Club stores through Sunday, or make contributions any time online at FeedingAmerica.org. 

Weslar said another way to contribute is to volunteer at your local food bank or pantry.

"It's a really neat experience," he said. "We have opportunities to work in the kitchen and make after-school meals for kids. We crank out about 2,000 meals a day. Or you could work at a mobile pantry out in the community, helping get food to neighbors in need."