Food stamps won’t be issued in Maine, or any other state, starting next month.

That’s the warning from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to the Maine Department of Health and Human Services and other state agencies as the federal government shutdown drags into its fourth week with no end in sight.

Nearly 170,000 Mainers rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, more commonly referred to as food stamps, to keep their cupboards stocked, according to Lindsay Hammes, a spokesperson for Maine DHHS.

Three-quarters of Maine households that receive the benefit include at least one working adult, more than a third include a person with a disability, 43% include an older adult and more than a third include children, Hammes said Tuesday morning.

In four Maine counties — Androscoggin

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