The Minnesota Department of Children, Youth, and Families says they're being forced to stop processing Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Benefits or food stamp applications starting Wednesday because of the government shutdown.

State leaders say the 440,000+ Minnesotans getting SNAP benefits are facing funding deadlines with dire consequences.

"I don't know what I would do if there wasn't a food shelf or SNAP," said Markita Banks of Minneapolis.

"Since March 2025, the demographic is very different from what it was before. People are coming here who've never had to ever visit a food shelf," said Sharon Abel, the executive director for the Groveland Emergency Food Shelf.

The Shelf sits in Minneapolis' Stevens Square neighborhood and says their numbers have drastically increased.

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