HUDSON VALLEY — The SNAP-Ed NY program, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program’s (SNAP) education component, lost its funding on September 30, following the passage of the Trump administration’s H.R.1, ‘the Big Beautiful Bill’. 

SNAP-Ed Regional Project Manager Shayna Russo maintained that programming in the Hudson Valley will continue, but in a limited capacity. 

“Programming will begin to look different across New York State,” Russo said. “In the Hudson Valley, we… remain committed to educating, supporting, and strengthening efforts around food, nutrition, and physical activity.” 

Russo said they are continuing to search for other funding opportunities, and unspent funds from 2025 will allow her organization to gradually wind down programs while continuing to support communities with the resources and staffing still available. “Efforts will continue for this impactful work,” she stated. 

Operated by Cornell Cooperative Extension, SNAP-Ed NY is a federally-funded initiative to help low-income residents improve their health and diet by learning how to prepare affordable and nutritious meals for their families. 

The program’s goal is to educate individuals while eliminating obstacles to healthy food, and educators work where they determine a need exists: in schools, hospitals, senior-living facilities, work-readiness programs, and food pantries. 

SNAP-Ed provides programming for SNAP-eligible individuals that is designed to increase the consumption of nutrient-dense fruits and vegetables, whole grains, lean meats and low-fat dairy products, while decreasing the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages. Programs also encourage increased physical activity, improved food resource management and food preparation, and increased access to affordable and nutritious food. 

SNAP-Ed began in 1992 when New York and six other states approved the Food Stamp Nutrition Education Plan. In 2010, obesity prevention and physical activity were added to the scope of the program. The 2018 Farm Bill solidified SNAP-Ed as the most robust federal nutrition education program. 

In 2024, the program reached more than 200,000 upstate New York residents through direct workshops, according to written reports. This week, SNAP-Ed falls to the cutting room floor as federal funding winds down and as administrators like Russo prepare for the next era of nutrition education. 

The cuts happen at a time when more than half of older adults in New York State report difficulty accessing affordable, quality food, according to an October 8 report released by the New York Health Foundation, a private network of primary and specialty care doctors. 

President and CEO of NY Health Foundation David Sandman said, “Recent cuts by the federal administration to food programs, especially the Supplemental Nutrition

Assistance Program (SNAP), will leave New Yorkers hungrier, poorer, and sicker. Our seniors should be able to nourish themselves and live with dignity.”  

Russo echoed Sandman’s warning, saying, “Losing SNAP-Ed removes education, opportunity and collaboration around food insecurity, nutrition security and anti-hunger efforts. SNAP-Ed is woven into so many efforts throughout the region, from group education classes at a local farmer’s market, to professional development for our school personnel. Losing it reduces capacity to combat hunger in ways that impact individuals, families and communities.”

Russo said there were over 200 full-time equivalent staff members funded with SNAP-Ed across New York State before the cuts, and in the Hudson Valley she has recently lost two staff members, including Sullivan County Nutritionist Subidha Neupane, due to fiscal uncertainty. She said any unspent funds from fiscal year 2025 can be used until September 30 next year but budgets and staffing differ between regions and team members will have to fill in where vacancies exist. 

Russo expected operations of the Hudson Valley component of SNAP-Ed to be able to continue with leftover monies through the end of January 2026. As all funds for programming must cease to be used by September 30, 2026, the network of nutrition educators and administrators comprising the 33-year old SNAP-Ed NY Program will continue to search for funding from other sources as they reimagine what their future will be without federal support.