Rural grocery stores brace for loss of SNAP benefits as shutdown continues

KNOX COUNTY, Tenn. — Grocery stores in some rural communities where families rely on food stamps are bracing for a loss of revenue as the federal government shutdown threatens food assistance.

Starting Saturday, an estimated 700,000 Tennesseans are at risk of losing their Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, benefits.

Ted Stank, a professor at the University of Tennessee and director of the Global Supply Chain Institute, said the issue won’t be supply, but demand.

In Knox County, about 35,000 people rely on SNAP. Percentage-wise, some counties depend on the program even more.

“It’s gonna have a large impact, particularly in areas like perishables where SNAP benefits really help people kind of bridge the gap,” Stank said.

In rural counties such as Scott, Cocke and Hancoc