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By Matthew Self
Wed, July 9, 2025 at 2:14 PM EDT
2 min read

TOPEKA (KSNT) – A Topeka non-profit and food pantry is revealing how recent cuts to a federal nutrition program will have an impact on the local community.

Johnathan Sublet with SENT Topeka talked about how recent funding cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) will impact the community. SNAP, which is operated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), helps families purchase food like fruits, vegetables, meats, dairy products and more.

“These decisions are life or death,” Sublet said.

The food pantry with SENT Topeka serves 600 local families each month in nearly 40 different ZIP codes. One aftereffect of the cuts is the loss of a Shawnee County SNAP education meal prep class, which was forced to shut down.

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“So many people think that because you come to a food bank, you’re depending on the system, you’re not trying to better your life,” Sublet said.

Sublet said many people served by SENT don’t have any health insurance. He said it is cheaper to teach them how to eat healthy rather than try to fix their health problems caused by a bad diet. […]