Des Moines Sun

Polk County received $116,062,837 in Food Assistance Program funding in 2021 for 60,084 program recipients, according to a Nodaway Valley Today analysis of data from Iowa's Department of Human Services.

This is a 38.8 percent increase from 2020, when 61,234 recipients received $83,597,233.

Qualified recipients in the Program are eligible to receive financial assistance in the form of Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) cards, which then can be used to buy groceries. The Program is part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's larger Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

Amount of Money Allocated for Polk County Food Assistance Program Participants 2012-2021

Year	Amount Allocated
2012	$106,457,927
2013	$106,292,300
2014	$100,198,349
2015	$98,363,692
2016	$98,047,415
2017	$85,586,729
2018	$87,169,029
2019	$83,597,233
2020	$116,062,837
2021	$148,337,563