About 1.4 million Michiganders are on the brink of seeing their food assistance cut of f in November if the federal government shutdown continues and food banks and pantries are preparing to meet an influx of need at a time when demand is already high.

Charitable organizations and the federal food benefits program are part of the safety net working to catch vulnerable families struggling to make ends meet and living paycheck to paycheck. The SNAP pause knocks down an important pillar of that system, adding pressure onto the state's already squeezed food banks and pantries, agency leaders told the Free Press.

The Detroit-based Capuchin Services Center, for instance, already sees more than 3,000 families in a month coming in for food. That number could increase to 5,000. The pause is goi

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