River Bend Times

Cedar County saw a 1 percent increase in the number of residents who participated in Iowa's Food Assistance Program from 2020 to 2021, according to a Cedar Guide analysis of data from the state's Department of Human Services.

In 2021, 1,005 recipients (458 households) in Cedar County participated in the Program compared to 995 recipients (441 households) in 2020.

Overall, $1,896,612 in food assistance payments were allocated to Cedar County recipients in 2021.

In 2020, $1,247,899 was allocated for Cedar County program participants.

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.

Number of Food Assistance Program Participants in Cedar County 2012-2021

Year	Number of recipients
2012	1,570
2013	1,556
2014	1,437
2015	1,372
2016	1,266
2017	1,219
2018	1,048
2019	995
2020	1,005
2021	928