SOUTH BEND, Ind.-- As the government shutdown continues into its sixth day, concerns mount over the ripple effects. Local services like food pantries are preparing for what could be an influx of need, if the shutdown lingers.

"We have in our network, in northern Indiana, we have 60 food pantries that distribute government commodities," said Marijo Martinec, executive director and CEO of the Food Bank of Northern Indiana. 

The St. Joseph County on-site pantry, located in South Bend, provides food to roughly 325 families a day, about as many as during the pandemic.

"A slower day for us is when we go under 300," Martinec said. 

According to Martinec, there's been a 15 percent increase in households coming for food assistance since last year, and a 66 percent increase in new households or individuals this year coming to the food pantry.

"Actually, we have seen that increased need for the past few years," she said.   

Now, a government shutdown's been added to the mix, and the Food Bank relies on the United States Department of Agriculture for nearly 30 percent of its food.

"We do have food that has gone through the process that we will be receiving, we believe, at least through the end of October, maybe into November," Martinec said. "But after that, we're not going to be receiving the government commodities until the government reopens for business."

The Food Bank could see increased demand if federal workers don't get their next paycheck, and if federal food assistance programs run out of funds. But for now, Martinec said, they are business as usual.

"We're just monitoring the situation," she said. 

Meanwhile, just down the street, Cultivate Food Rescue finds itself in a good position to step up, should the shutdown linger.

"For the first time, I feel like we're fortunate that we don't depend on federal or state funding," said Jim Conklin, co-founder and executive director of Cultivate Food Rescue. 

Conklin told ABC57's Annie Kate he isn't too worried about the shutdown, "Other than we expect our food demand to go up significantly."

Cultivate sources uneaten food from local restaurants, catering companies, and grocers, preventing food waste and redistributing the food through partner agencies and its school backpack program. It began seven years ago, and with its new cold storage warehouse, Conklin is confident Cultivate can meet the moment.

"Food prices are up, you know, 20 percent over the last four years, so the total amount of food available for neighbors in need has dwindled from places like the food bank," Conklin said. "And now, you have the short-term shutdown and long-term, you actually have real spending cuts, so we expect the demand for the food that we supply to go up significantly, the great thing is, we can fill that gap."