USDA will fund Snap food benefits, feeding millions of Americans

After weeks of consternation and legal back-and-forth, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) said on Friday it will pay for food benefits for more than 42 million Americans.

Funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (Snap), also known as food stamps, has been at the centre of the US government shutdown, which has now entered its 38th day.

A judge told the Trump administration it had to use contingency funding to feed the one in eight Americans who depend on the program. But that funding, could not cover the full nearly $9bn (£6.9bn) monthly price tag of the program.

Then on Thursday, a different judge said the Trump administration had to fully fund the program.

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