Forced federal workers stand in line for hours outside a special food distribution hosted by Capital Area Food Bank and No Limits Outreach Ministries on Barlowe Road in Hyattsville, Maryland, Tuesday, Oct. 28, 2025. (Photo by Ashley Murray/States Newsroom)
HYATTSVILLE, Md. – Ginette Young lined up Tuesday with hundreds of furloughed federal workers ahead of a special food distribution from a suburban food bank outside the District of Columbia.
“I’m here because I haven’t had a paycheck for the last two weeks, and I’ve had a short paycheck for the last two weeks. I had to pay bills, and my credit cards were able to pay for medical appointments and medical appointments. So I just need to stock up the pantry a little bit to help us get over the hump,” said Young, a 61-year-old auditor for the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Young, a District resident, was among hundreds of furloughed federal workers hoping to get pantry staples and fresh produce at an event sponsored by the Capital Area Food Bank and No Limits Outreach Ministries in Hyattsville.
Food security took center stage in the shutdown debate this week, as hundreds of thousands of furloughed government workers faced yet another missed paycheck and 42 million recipients of federal food aid were told they would stop receiving benefits on Saturday.
The Trump administration has stated this will not utilize emergency funds at the USDA to extend the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, despite noisy calls from advocates and Democrats who say it is perfectly legal for officials to utilize the money for a rainy day.
“The longer the shutdown continues, these types of distributions will become a lifesaver for so many,” said Radha Muthiah, president and CEO of Capital Area Food Bank.
“And I’m concerned that we’re going to see double, triple that number of people, both federal workers on furlough and those who are expecting SNAP benefits and are surprised on Saturday morning when they don’t get them,” Muthiah said.
Food bank staff expected about 150 households to show up for the first distribution event for federal workers in early October. Muthiah said the organization had to quickly double its results.
During Tuesday’s event, the food bank and No Limits Outreach Ministries prepared enough food for 400 households. Add to this the complete suspension of food aid to low-income families, and hunger needs in the region will skyrocket, Muthiah said.
“There are approximately 400,000 SNAP recipients throughout our region, and on average they receive approximately $330 in SNAP benefits per month for a family of two. So if this were disrupted by the cost of a meal in our region, approximately 80 meals would be taken off the tables of SNAP recipients throughout our region,” Muthiah said.
“That’s why we’re increasing our efforts and purchasing more food to distribute to the community through our partners.”
Kale, cabbage was distributed
Tracy Bryce, 59, of District Heights, Maryland, unloaded kale and cabbage from the back of a U-Haul truck as hundreds of federal workers with employment documents waited for the southern distribution to open.
Bryce, a retired United States Marshal with 34 years of service, currently volunteers with No Limits Outreach Ministries.
“I was where they were,” Bryce said.
Byron Ford, 34, of Hyattsville, sat for hours in a chair he brought that morning when the temperature was in the 40s.
“I’m here today trying to get some food, just trying to provide healthy food for my family,” said Ford, who has two children, ages 4 and 7.
“We’re lucky that we have things like this that provide for people who aren’t getting a paycheck. So we’re lucky, we’re still blessed.”
Ford, a civilian employee in charge of Department of the Navy finances, also worries about family members receiving SNAP benefits.
“We just spend our savings and try to help,” he said.
Young said she remembers what it was like to need SNAP decades ago.
“You know, I was trying to work and go to college at the same time, I had a baby, so yes, I took SNAP for a while. It’s supposed to help people until they get back on their feet,” she said.
A furloughed government project manager who did not want to give her full name for fear of losing her job said it was “hard to be a political pawn.”
“They (lawmakers) have a chance to go home in the middle of all this and not finish the allocation, not continue the talks because they choose to disgrace the position that their people have put them in and continue to make money while their people suffer,” she said.
Grocery stores and retailers are worried about SNAP being cut off
Retailers and grocery stores, already bracing for losses when SNAP cuts introduced by Republicans in their “big, beautiful bill” take effect, are also calling on lawmakers to reopen the government.
“We are calling on Congress to pursue a path now that reopens the government and ensures families who rely on SNAP have access to November benefits without interruption or delay,” Jennifer Hatcher, director of public policy for the Food Industry Association, said in an Oct. 21 statement.
Already scheduled SNAP cuts are expected to cost food retailers hundreds of millions of dollars, industry groups warn.
Food retailers estimate the upfront costs of the upcoming novel SNAP requirements signed by President Donald Trump in July will cost convenience stores about $1 billion, supermarkets just over $305 million, supercenters like Walmart an estimated $215.5 million and small-format stores about $11.8 million, according to the Impact report analysis last month by the Grocery Industry Association, the National Association of Convenience Stores and the National Grocery Store Association.
Ed Bolen, director of SNAP state strategies at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, said retailers could face “very drastic” losses if SNAP also stops completely on Nov. 1.
“Imagine a 100% cut for about a month,” said Bolen of a left-wing think tank.
The United Food and Commercial Workers Union sent letter on Monday to USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins, asking the agency to issue emergency funds to extend SNAP benefits beyond next week.
“Rising costs at the grocery store are already threatening household budgets, especially for low-income families. The discontinuation of food assistance will only make the situation worse, and workers in meatpacking, food processing and grocery stores could see their hours and wages reduced if SNAP dollars cannot be spent on their stores or products,” wrote Milton Jones, president of the union, which the organization says represents about 1.2 million workers.
