South Iowa News

Decatur County saw a 6.3 percent decrease in the number of residents who participated in Iowa's Food Assistance Program from 2019 to 2020, according to a Decatur Guide analysis of data from the state's Department of Human Services.

In 2020, 846 recipients (441 households) in Decatur County participated in the Program compared to 903 recipients (460 households) in 2019.

Overall, $1,628,518 in food assistance payments were allocated to Decatur County recipients in 2020.

In 2019, $1,173,519 was allocated for Decatur 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 Decatur County 2011-2020

Year	Number of recipients
2011	1,634
2012	1,566
2013	1,520
2014	1,392
2015	1,325
2016	1,238
2017	1,227
2018	1,102
2019	903
2020	846