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Boone County saw a 6 percent decrease in the number of residents who participated in Iowa's Food Assistance Program from 2020 to 2021, according to a Boone Guide analysis of data from the state's Department of Human Services.

In 2021, 1,751 recipients (892 households) in Boone County participated in the Program compared to 1,863 recipients (933 households) in 2020.

Overall, $3,339,507 in food assistance payments were allocated to Boone County recipients in 2021.

In 2020, $2,388,082 was allocated for Boone 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 Boone County 2012-2021

Year	Number of recipients
2012	2,869
2013	2,876
2014	2,646
2015	2,497
2016	2,456
2017	2,232
2018	2,071
2019	1,863
2020	1,751
2021	1,597