Sioux City Times

Woodbury County saw a 4 percent decrease in the number of residents who participated in Iowa's Food Assistance Program from 2020 to 2021, according to a Woodbury Guide analysis of data from the state's Department of Human Services.

In 2021, 13,882 recipients (6,441 households) in Woodbury County participated in the Program compared to 14,463 recipients (6,640 households) in 2020.

Overall, $26,405,261 in food assistance payments were allocated to Woodbury County recipients in 2021.

In 2020, $19,347,919 was allocated for Woodbury 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 Woodbury County 2012-2021

Year	Number of recipients
2012	19,532
2013	20,072
2014	19,417
2015	18,628
2016	17,601
2017	17,030
2018	15,922
2019	14,463
2020	13,882
2021	12,938