NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — More than 121,000 Middle Tennessee families rely on SNAP benefits to help put food on the table.

Following a USDA announcement that benefits won’t go out next month, families like Hailey Privette’s are bracing for what could be one of their toughest months yet.

Privette lives in Mount Juliet with seven other family members — her three young children, her grandparents, Phyllis Flatt and her husband, and her two teenage siblings.

She said they were already barely making it before hearing the news that their food assistance would be suspended.

Even when she sticks to store brands, she said the prices add up quickly

“For pasta and stuff like that, Walmart is cheaper,” she said. “Their Great Value meat a lot of times is better.”

Privette receives a little under $

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