SE Iowa News

Henry County saw a 5 percent decrease in the number of residents who participated in Iowa's Food Assistance Program from 2020 to 2021, according to a Henry Guide analysis of data from the state's Department of Human Services.

In 2021, 2,128 recipients (998 households) in Henry County participated in the Program compared to 2,239 recipients (1,006 households) in 2020.

Overall, $4,009,570 in food assistance payments were allocated to Henry County recipients in 2021.

In 2020, $2,786,404 was allocated for Henry 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 Henry County 2012-2021

Year	Number of recipients
2012	3,204
2013	3,141
2014	2,901
2015	2,667
2016	2,553
2017	2,455
2018	2,349
2019	2,239
2020	2,128
2021	1,987