Food banks, feeding programs gird for federal shutdown’s impact

Food banks and pantries statewide, already straining to fill the gap from the end of COVID benefits, are bracing to meet additional demand if a government shutdown furloughs federal and military workers and federal nutrition programs run dry. “If people are without a paycheck and then they also need our services…it will be a strain on our organization, because we are already overwhelmed with people,” said Krista Pettit, director of One Mission Cambridge, a nonprofit group of churches providing food assistance and other services.