U.S. Shutdown hits food assistance and threatens sales at Walmart and Kroger

 

On November 12, as the US Congress is due to vote on the reopening of the government until January 30, 2026, the government “shutdown”, in place since early October 2025, is threatening the US$100 billion food assistance programme paid each year to 42 million Americans. On November 8, the Department of Agriculture (USDA) asked States to suspend the full payment of these November 2025 allocations. While several States decided to maintain payments by drawing on their own funds in the hope of a f