EAGAN, Minn — Gov. Tim Walz announced emergency state funding will be used to help Minnesota food shelves next month as SNAP benefit distributions are set to pause on Nov. 1 amid the ongoing federal government shutdown.

"It's a human right to have food," Gov. Walz said ahead of a volunteer event at an Eagan food shelf. "In the most abundant food supply of any country on Earth, in the United States and us being at the heart of that, heartland of food production, it's absolutely unnecessary for people to go hungry."

According to the Walz administration, 440,000 Minnesotans receive grocery benefits from the SNAP, or the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and the Minnesota Family Investment Program (MFIP). Walz said 38% of program recipients are children and 18% are seniors.

"This

See Full Page