Yes, no agriculture is an even bigger problem than no power.

You don't think modern agriculture and energy are intimately related?

I'm honestly a bit shocked.

I do think they are, but it's also (obviously) the case that if an eruption blotted out the sun and disrupted wind currents, having the ability to keep generating power would not help much because the plants and animals we eat would all die.

And what's with the weird tone? It's a super banal point that our food requires sun. I highly doubt you're "shocked" by it.

Yeah. Crop failures and famine. Way bigger problem.

And depending on the eruption, for anywhere from years to centuries or longer.

Availability of energy can mitigate crop failure and lack of energy also leads to crop failure.

How can people not generally understand the connection?

You are thinking too far ahead. There is a real risk of persistent cloud cover and ash in many places without total crop failure.