A sign on Main Street in Newcastle depicts concern around reduced SNAP funding on Monday, July 28. According to Feeding America data, 13.8% of the Maine population was food insecure in 2023. (Ali Juell photo)
On the morning of July 8, the Ecumenical Food Pantry’s volunteers operated like a well-oiled machine. Workers flitted across the Second Congregational Church basement in Newcastle, keeping tables of produce, baked goods, and other groceries well-stocked for pantry visitors.
Visitors and volunteers alike were excited about that week’s crisp heads of lettuce and fresh bunches of kale, but many were also worried about growing food insecurity in the county.
“The demand is going up,” said Ben Sack, who has been shopping at the pantry for over two years. “Sometimes we come in here and we’re kind of limited as to what we can get because it’s such a shortage.”
Food distribution data shows food insecurity has been on the rise, and as Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program eligibility requirements are tightening, pantry organizers are worried about giving shoppers the grocery options they deserve.
Ecumenical Food Pantry co-manager Ellen Dickens said the Newcastle pantry is ready to assist families in need, but many volunteers and recipients across Lincoln County are worried about local food assistance.
According to the Maine Department of Health and Human Services, over 176,000 Mainers receiving SNAP benefits will be impacted by federal changes to the program. The federal budget bill passed in July cuts eligibility for lawfully present non-citizens altogether and makes work requirements more stringent.
To receive SNAP benefits for more than three months in a three-year period, recipients must work at least 80 hours a month unless they qualify for an exemption. Waivers for people aged 54-64, parents with children aged 14 and older, veterans, and qualifying rural-area residents will disappear before the year ends.
Allison Brooks, president of Jefferson’s food pantry, said she’s seen demand grow when municipal taxes increase or when SNAP funding reduces, so she expects the recent federal changes to have a similar effect.
Even before the bill was introduced, the number of Lincoln County residents requiring food assistance was already on the rise.
According to distribution data shared by Good Shepherd Food Bank, the state’s largest food assistance provider, the Auburn-based nonprofit’s contributions to Lincoln County have steadily risen over the last decade. The county’s pantries received 700,535 pounds of food during the 2025 fiscal year, which is 130,909 pounds higher than the average of the previous 10 years.
Jeanne Shaw started volunteering at the Whitefield food pantry in 2016 and became the pantry’s co-manager six years ago. She said the pantry has gone from being open once a month to twice a month to, now since the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, weekly.
According to Robin McCarthy, Good Shepherd Food Bank’s chief advancement officer, food insecurity has risen across the state since 2021 and will likely continue to climb.
“As food and other essentials become more expensive, we’re seeing hunger rates across the state steadily increase incrementally,” McCarthy said. “We’re going to see (the SNAP changes) turn into more pressure on food pantries across the state.”
Pantry organizers are already feeling that pressure as they worry about diminishing donations.
Food pantries mainly depend on retail grocery stores and non-profit food organizations like Good Shepherd to keep their shelves stocked.
Despite providing more food than in previous years, McCarthy said food assistance program changes in March have caused “a direct cut of resources to the food bank.”
The Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program, which funds local farms that specifically cultivate produce for food banks and pantries, was cut entirely. Funding for The Emergency Food Assistance Program, a USDA initiative that distributes free shelf-stable foods and proteins, was also reduced.
On top of funding reductions, “we’ve definitely seen a decrease in that food (from retail partners) that we’re receiving,” said Eden Martin, community outreach and volunteer manager for the food assistance initiative, Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program.
Because the program is based in Brunswick, Martin said pantries in Lincoln County are probably seeing even sharper reductions in direct donations from local retail grocers.
Several pantry organizers said they are anticipating shortages and rising food prices in the coming months.
As food suppliers have less food to give out, organizers’ chief concern is maintaining the range of options pantry participants deserve.
Shaw said people who come into the Whitefield pantry are already facing constraints on how much protein they can take.
“I did this job because I wanted to help people and to limit them hurts,” she said. “(People) are there because they’re hungry and then you’re saying ‘No you can’t have that.’”
In preparation for greater demand, Alna Pantry organizer Jim Cannon said he and his team of volunteers are trying to find new sources for food donations. Shaw also said she is looking for alternative food suppliers.
Providers have worked to combat a “scarcity mindset” usually associated with food assistance, McCarthy said, but current challenges could walk back that progress.
“We’ve been able to really shift the way that we think about food access from dented cans and dusty boxes of pasta … to really prioritizing fresh fruits and vegetables,” McCarthy said. “I just think it’s going to get harder to prioritize that as we move forward.”
Despite uncertainty around food assistance in the coming months, pantry organizers across the county said they’re doing everything they can to provide stability for families.
“People know that we are going to be here, that we have food for them,” Dickens said. “I think that has helped people feel more secure about what’s happening in their lives.”
Cannon said his team of volunteers is talking with pantry visitors to determine what food options they need most and even try to offer services beyond food assistance.
If community members want to help pantries adequately address food insecurity, Dickens said people can donate food or money to pantries.
“You can’t change the world, but you can change your town,” Brooks said, encouraging people to volunteer.
Even though this is a challenging moment for food assistance, McCarthy said she is confident that people will respond with care for their neighbors.
“The state of Maine has shown us over and over again in recent years that there’s an incredible capacity for generosity and community building,” she said.
