Recovery: About 1 in 7 in U.S. Receive Food Stamps
May 4th, 2011Via: Christian Science Monitor:
As a logical consequence of the prolonged economic downturn it appears that participation in the federal food stamp program is continuing to rise.
In fact, household participation has been climbing so steadily that it has far surpassed the last peak set as a result of the immediate fallout following hurricane Katrina.
The latest data released by the Department of Agriculture shows that in February, an additional 11,517 new recipients were added to the food stamps program, an increase of 11.65% on a year-over-year basis, while household participation increased 13.97%.
Individual participation as a ratio of the overall civilian non-institutional population has increased 10.78% over the same period.
I suspect the food stamp program is lobbied for pretty heavily by the corporate fake-food industry. Traditionally most poor people eat lousy ‘convenience’ foods.
But actually I’ve come to view the food stamp program in a whole different light. About half a year ago I told my wife we ‘needed’ to apply for food stamps. Certainly we qualified (having spent close to a decade down-sizing our life to where we have virtually no debt and plenty of spare time to pursue our personal interests). But the reason I felt we ‘needed’ to get food stamps was because it basically served – for us – exactly as a small government grant that we’ve been given administration over for the specific purpose of supporting our locally-produced food economy. Instead of supporting General Mills and Kraft, we buy high-priced products from local entrepreneurs and farmers who we actually know well. We’re not mooching off the system by any stretch, rather we’re intelligently investing in a more healthy and sustainable future for our local region.
I suspect if more and more people thought this way the food stamp program would be halted pretty quickly. But I don’t think there’s much chance of the average American changing their diet and spending more time in the kitchen any time soon.
BTW – it’s not even food coupons anymore, it’s a swipe-card. People in our food co-op have no stigma whatsoever about whipping it out and paying for things…it might as well be a gold card for all we care.
Oh – one other side note. Many people here use the food stamp program as barter: you give me this thing or do this work for me, and I’ll buy you X amount of shopping for you in exchange. A good friend of mine who’s a farmer is doing just that to help get workers for a huge amount of Swiss chard he’s trying to get into the ground today.
It’s a beautiful thing really. The government has spent so many billions supporting corporations that are working against us. This is an intelligent means to re-claim and vote with your own tax dollars for a better way of life. If, like I said, you choose to see it that way.