Louisville’s Dare to Care program expects increased demand now that reductions to the food stamps program have gone into effect.

Increases to the food stamps program, formally called the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, approved during the economic recovery expired Friday. That means about 870,000 Kentuckians will see their monthly benefits drop by $20 to $36.

The Louisville food bank increased its goal for food distribution by 1-million pounds—to 17-million pounds—to meet demand from those families, Dare to Care spokesman Stan Siegwald said.

“Now planning to do that and doing it are two different things and we’re counting on this community to continue its longtime support of Dare to Care so that we can procure the food that’s needed to make sure that people are able to get the meals on the table that they need to be healthy,” he said.

But with the holidays approaching, Dare to Care is entering a busy season for contributions.

Siegwald notes that the program is emphasizing healthful food options, but for those it needs financial donations.

One in six Kentucky households can’t afford healthful foods, said a report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture released in September.

Dare to Care has so far stayed on target to meet the new demands following the benefits reduction, Siegwald said.

And he expects they’ll need it.

“The folks that receive these benefits are already faced with making difficult economic choices,” Siegwald says. “Those choice are now going to be a little bit tougher, and we suspect that they now are going to need to supplement their monthly budget with more private food assistance.”