New Ulm Emergency Food Shelf executive director Brad Kirk, stands between the food shelves Thursday. Kirk was confident the food shelf could fill in the gap for Brown County families on food benefit programs funding was cut by the ongoing government shutdonw.
NEW ULM – Thursday morning, Brown County Human Services was unable to approve new application for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) due to the government shutdown. By Thursday afternoon, that order had been rescinded, but with no certainty if new SNAP applications will be pulled again.
Brown County Human Service Director Anne Broskoff said there are two overlapping issues effecting SNAP application. The first is the government shutdown which has cut additional funding to the program.
“There is enough revenue to fund SNAP through October, but not enough going forward to cover benefits in November,” Broskoff said.
If the government shutdown does not end before Oct. 31, SNAP benefits could be cut to hundreds of Brown County residents. Brown County currently has 788 clients on SNAP.
The second issue with the government shutdown is the county’s ability to approve new SNAP applications.
On Tuesday, Human Services received an email from The Department of Children Youth and Family (DCYF) that because of the shutdown, no new applicants for benefits could be approved after 10 p.m.
Then Wednesday, Human Services received an email clarifying new applicants could be approved through Wednesday, with Thursday being the new cutoff for approving new applications.
Thursday afternoon, DCYF sent another email stating the new application blocks would be lifted. New SNAP applications can now be approved through Oct. 31.
Broskoff is uncertain if DCYF will change orders later, but for now the county is able to approved, new SNAP benefits. She clarified that the county will always be able to process SNAP applications, but not necessarily approve them if the shutdown continues into November.
Broskoff encouraged people who needed food assistance to apply for SNAP benefits. She said at the very least the application could be started and approved once the government opens again.
“We could have a backlog, but I want to process them as fast as possible,” She said.
Brown County has averaged 65 new SNAP applications per month in 2025.
Broskoff said if the shutdown lasts into November and benefits are cut, the county could see a lot of hardship from those who rely on support.
Without SNAP, it is expected that much of the support will need to come from area food shelves.
Brad Kirk, executive director of the New Ulm Area Emergency Food Shelf, is confident they could fill in as gap support if needed.
“We’re doing fine right now,” Kirk said. “We’re well stocked. I am not worried that we don’t have enough food.”
Kirk said Second Harvest sends a food truck every two weeks that provides much of the supplies for the food shelf.
Kirk said if he cannot get it from Second Harvest, he can usually get it locally. The New Ulm Food Shelf recently received a $10,000 donation from the New Ulm chapter of 100 Women Who Care. Kirk said this has helped them obtain food locally.
In addition, many of the local grocery stores participate in the food rescue program, supplying the food shelf extra food.
Kirk said the New Ulm Food Shelf is currently serving about 160 families a month.
“We’re suppose to provide them with three days worth of food, but we have been providing more than that,” Kirk said. “If we need to cut back some, we are able to do so.”
Kirk was quick to credit the volunteers who helped at New Ulm’s Food Shelf.
“We couldn’t do this without our volunteers,” he said. “We have 30 volunteers that work once week and about 300 volunteers that work once a year.”
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