A celebrity chef in Texas is asking Governor Greg Abbott to unlock $450 million to feed hungry children in the state.
Chef Tiffany Derry owns several popular restaurants, but she’s concerned about food insecurity and that business is slow because people can’t afford to eat out.
“The need is too great to ignore,” Chef Tiffany told Texas Monthly, referring to the one in five Texas children who are going hungry.
She’s calling on Governor Abbott to enroll Texas in a federal program called Sun Bucks that gives qualifying families $120 per child for groceries.
Last January, Texas was one of only thirteen states to decline participation in the federal program — rejecting $450 million in federal dollars for 3.75 million Texas children eligible for the program.
“People aren’t asking for handouts,” Tiffany said, adding that families are affected by soaring grocery prices.
Texas has to commit $60 million in administrative costs to be eligible to enroll by the January 1, 2026 deadline, which Gov. Abbott is unwilling to do.
The Legislature, he said, is concerned that participation in the federal program could result in higher costs for Texas.
“Once there is more clarity about the long-term fiscal ramifications for creating such a program, the Legislature can reconsider funding this item,” he said.
For Chef Tiffany, enrolling the state in the program is a legitimate emergency response.
She said this is the first time in her 27 years in the restaurant industry that business hasn’t been “up” from previous months.
Fellow restaurant owners are worried, she said. “Everyone needs help. It’s time for the government to step in.”
Chef Tiffany hopes advocates and other Texans will urge the governor to opt in to the federal program.
She thinks back to her grandma, who regularly fed her eleven children and fifty-plus grandchildren on a tight budget.
Tiffany shares her family matriarch’s commitment that no one goes hungry on her watch. No one should get to feast and leave others unfed.
“There’s more people that have to eat out of the pot,” Tiffany said.
