NEW ORLEANS — As the federal shutdown continues for a third week, Gov. Jeff Landry on Friday declared a state of emergency to address the potential loss of food assistance for hundreds of thousands of Louisianans.

The move comes after that residents who rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) could stop receiving benefits on Nov. 1 if the shutdown continued.

Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said it could not guarantee November SNAP payments with the shutdown disrupting federal funding for several of its programs, and instructed states to hold off on issuing benefits in November because this would delay transmitting funds to state EBT vendors.

Landry said the potential loss of benefits would “significantly increase food insecurity among Louisian

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