As the shutdown drags on, St. Louis food pantry braces for surge in need

By Bill Motchan, Contributing Writer

Published October 28, 2025

Jewish Food Pantry St. Louis shutdown — Tuesday morning outside the Harvey Kornblum Jewish Food Pantry.

The federal government shutdown is likely to create increased demand at the Harvey Kornblum Jewish Food Pantry and other community-based food distribution centers. Jewish Family Services (JFS) of St. Louis is keeping tabs on the situation and the potential for more families requesting food and personal care items.

The Harvey Kornblum Jewish Food Pantry is the largest food pantry in the metropolitan area. In a typical month, it provides seven to 10 days of food for up to 6,000 people in St. Louis and St. Louis County. That number may increase, and other smaller food pantries have already begun sending clients to the facility as they are running low on supplies, according to Mat DeKinder, communications coordinator at JFS.

“The strain isn’t just on us, it’s on other food pantries,” DeKinder said. “We’re able to handle numbers that some of the smaller food pantries aren’t.”

DeKinder said the Kornblum Jewish Food Pantry is also seeing furloughed federal government employees show up who were not typical clients. The likelihood of more demand as the government shutdown continues is a situation JFS is monitoring closely, according to Miriam Seidenfeld, CEO of JFS.

“These developments are deeply concerning,” Seidenfeld said. “Families who already struggle to put food on the table may soon face an even greater hardship. At JFS, we are preparing for what we know will be a growing need in the weeks and months ahead.”

One factor that could generate even more food insecurity in the St. Louis area is the loss of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits. The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced last week that SNAP benefits will not be issued for November, and the Missouri Department of Social Services reported there is not sufficient funding for the benefits.

As of 2022, there were 62,509 SNAP recipients in St. Louis city and 101,334 recipients in St. Louis County, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. When operational, SNAP benefits are loaded onto a benefit card which can be used like a debit card at most grocery stores. Households must meet specific income levels to be eligible for the benefit and benefit cards.

A best-cast scenario would be for the federal government shutdown to end in the next several weeks. That may not create immediate relief for SNAP recipients, however. JFS is attempting to obtain clarification on how quickly recipients of government assistance would begin receiving benefits.

The Harvey Kornblum Jewish Food Pantry usually sees an increased demand for services on a seasonal basis, so the organization is able to address fluctuations in client needs. Likewise, donations to the food pantry are predictable. Donations generally increase significantly during the High Holidays, which are usually sufficient to meet budget needs for the remainder of the year.