Take the Food Stamp Challenge

Most of us will never face the prospect of going without a meal. We can only imagine what a life of hunger and poverty must be like. The reality, however, is more present than many of us realize:

• 35 million Americans don’t have enough to eat
• Four out of five food stamp recipients in our country are children

Take the Food Stamp Challenge and see if you can eat nutritious meals on $3.00 a day. Experience the reality faced by millions of Americans living in poverty.

The Challenge:
Take one week and buy your groceries using the average food stamp benefit of $3.00 per person per day and then...

• Post a comment to this entry and describe your experience.
• Talk with friends and neighbors about the sacrifices you were forced to make.
• Talk to your pastor and ask if you can share your story at mass one Sunday.
• Learn about and endorse Catholic Charities USA’s Campaign to Reduce Poverty in America and invite friends, family and fellow parishioners to endorse too! Encourage community groups and organizations that you are a part of to endorse the campaign as well.

Comments

[M. Brockway]

You can eat healthily on $3.00 a day if you shop properly; cereal for breakfast, a piece of fruit for lunch and nuts, beans or another source of protein for dinner. In my work with the poor, I find that many of them do not manage their money properly and in many cases smoke. Many are poor because of unwise choices in life.

[B Nyers]

I don't believe anyone was asking for an opinion on why people are poor. The facts are quite simply that some people are. To say you can eat healthy on $3.00 a day is absurd, judemental and condescending. On a diet of cereal, fruit, nuts and beans on a daily basis one could starve. And only someone who does not have to live like that would have the affront to tell others to!

[K Carbello]

It is not possible to eat healthy on 3 dollars a day. I am not sure what world you live in.

[K Carbello]

There is more to poverty than unwise choices. It is true that unwise choices may be a factor in life circumstances but my background and education have taught me that it is almost never the most significant factor.

[bfahrn]

$3 weekly grocery limit! Yes I could to it, with NO extra goodies like organic yogurt. But - I have a little plot of garden space where I grow practically all I need - beans, peppers, herbs, greens, berries. A very healthy diet with no meat. Buy - olive oil, salt, wheat grain, barley and oats once a year. Live rural live cheap. It's great!

[jwt]

I find the challenge interesting. I have a question however. The implication is that the challenge is to live on $3.00 per day for food which what is provided for the poor. However, if that is the average benefit, I assume it is not what one is expected to eat on per day. What is the maximum daily food stamp allowance which assumes no other income available for food? That would be a truer test. I did a quick check at the USDA site for an individual with no income and got about a $5.00 a day estimate. Still not a lot but would make a significant difference over $3 per day.

[kathy]

The challenge is just that.......A challenge. With creative shopping you can eat healthy and spend $21.00 per weeek for one person. Breakfast- Instant oatmeal, lunch- sandwich,carrots & celery ( for the crunch), snack of raisins and dinner combinations of pastas and vegetable soups.Increase intake to suggested 8 glasses of water a day.

[karen]

One of the downsides to the challenge is that the $21 per week figure (or $3/day) is the maximum benefit. About 15% of those who apply for food stamps actually receive the maxiumum amount. In my work of ministering to the poor, I often find that most receive much less than that. Yesterday, I visited with an elderly woman living on a fixed income and she received $28/ month in food stamps. And, the challenge is NOT about placing judgment on those we minister to and advocate for. It is about acknowledging there is a need and our call is to both address the immediate need and the underlying causes. I can not bury my head in my grocery bag full of organic fruit, whole wheat bread, hormone-free milk and free range chicken and pretend that hunger does not exist and that I don't have to do anything about it because the poor just make bad choices. Jesus calls me to see Him hungry and to do something about it.

[sandy]

I am on social security disability every month so I am on a very limited budget for groceries and household expenses.
I am not on food stamps but I only allow myself 25 dollars a week for food and 15 dollars for household expenses. I am doing okay but it is hard for sure. I buy store brand items cause the brand name costs way too much.

[jerome hazelwood]

where are you people shopping to buy this 3 dollar a day diet- this is nonsense the most nutrituos fruits and vegetables and grains and nuts are the most expensive items in the grocery store especially nuts and fruits are you people kidding?my wife and i shop the outer isles of the supermarket and stay away from procesed stuff 95% of the time and still run out of money before the end of the month-we live on just under 4 dollars aday apiece and go to food pantries this thinking is highly offensive and people doing experiments for a couple of weeks or a month am i supposed to be impressed?i have lived this way for years-is it possible of course is it healthy-no way