food stamp question..?

The problem with food stamps is that nutrition education does not come with it. There is also the problem that there are people who only get $10 a month. (I worked at a grocery store and the elderly were usually the people who only had $10 but needed more) Then there is also the rising cost in food. (Big chain grocery shopping is even worse..) A small family will have a harder time with food stamp money than a bigger family because more bulk in food items = less $ per unit. I think a nutrition planning and cooking class should come with food stamps (unless it would interfere with their job.) Things like how to shop, where to shop for the best prices (that will take food stamps) How to freeze things, and sample recipes for low cost healthy meals. They should demonstrate the ease of the meals to teach that they do have the time to cook them and they should demonstrate how to make two batches at once and how to correctly freeze the second meal. They could also take the opportunity to throw in healthy suggestions like buying whole wheat bread and using whole grain rice. (Poor people tend to be the heaviest in my country and food stamps correlates with poor that is why I suggest teaching healthier alternatives to help with that problem as well)

You are not wrong in thinking this. One of my friends gets nearly 500$ and is always scrounging at the end of the month to get food. I have tried to have her come shopping with me, at the time my budget was less and I had one more mouth to feed than her to show her how to shop better to provide more, but she didn't want the information. (she thinks it is just me cutting coupons and using them, but it is not. The coupons help alot but it is not what really keeps my food bill down) She is not the only one. (Her mom had the same problem when she had them too) There are alot of people who do not have food stamps that need this kind of help too, so I think that kind of class should be available to everyone. Especially when everybody is trying to save $$, they could learn how to cut back on their food bill.

One thing that many also do not consider is that what each person gets can vary from person to person. A family of five might only get $150 a month but that is all they have to spend on food. So many things contribute to altering the amount someone would get, so we can not assume that the person complaining is one that receives close to $500.

ETA: Not many people actually sell their food stamps. While working at the grocery store, I did see it a few times. I worked in a really poor neighborhood and people knew they needed food. If they came in my line though, I would not serve them and I would have security escort them out. Another store can deal with federal charges. It is a federal offense to sell your food stamps, especially if it is going to booze (The men that this actually happened to while I worked there, one was buying formula and the other was taking the money to buy a big case of beer) But it does not happen often enough and when I saw it in other lines, the moms were using the money for diapers. (I saw them have an older child run back and get the diapers and had a sigh of relief on their faces) So, that can not be a regular reason. education in menu planning will go a long way... (ETA: It is not he same as money, it can only be used for food, hot foods excluded. Some people can have it put in their bank account, but only those over 60 usually)

My family of 5 does not currently qualify for food stamps. We are 50 dollars over the income limits. So we have to buy food with money, i spend about 400 dollars a month, i also get wic for 2 children and that, honestly, is the only thing keeping us from not being so broke with having to buy food.

I think people like this are living in area's where food is really expensive or something, either that or they are exaggerating. Some people just do not have good budgeting sense i think.

Another thing that kinda makes me mad is how people like me who really need it, can't get it because we are over income limits.. but then there are people who are single mothers, and live with boyfriends that make good money and they say they aren't living with anyone and they get the full amount allowed for themselves and their children.

Then in my state if you are on cash assistance and get a job that closes out your cash, you get your food stamps frozen for 5 months, meaning you get the same amount as if you were not working at all.

I understand that this will help people adjust better, but why is the same thing not done for people who are saying comming off of un-employment for the last 5 or 6 months? Or even people who had lost their jobs at a good work place, making good money, and then had to switch to a job making less money... i'm talking about much less money here.

I just don't think the system is very fair honestly. Sometimes getting food stamps for some people means that they can get to work, this day in age people are debating over to buy food, or buy medicine, pay for their car payment and so on.

I am glad i don't have a car payment, or i'd be in that situation right now!

I agree with you... plus the food stamps is not supposed to be their sole source to pay for groceries....as a family of 3 right now we spend about $350 a month on groceries and sometimes that includes the diapers and wipes we need to buy and other things like razors, toothpaste and the like.....( we got to super Walmart) anyhow we eat really well. We eat good foods. Lately I've been cooking good, fresh, dinners for us that can last for days. We get no food stamps and this all on our own... so I imagine people with food stamps can do the same because it's the same as money right?

How can a mother, on nearly $500 a month not be able to do the same? Maybe because she buys junk for her boys because they are teens....

Sure what we spend on groceries might seem a bit much but take in account that like I said it includes other things too. So maybe we spend like $200 on actual food.

I've been on food stamps in the past. I made sure to make that dollar stretch by using coupons, buying groceries on sale and making food to stretch (I was raising three teenagers at that time) baking your own cookies is a good way to save money and spend quality time with the kids AND have sweets in the house. If I were to be frivolous, I'd buy the good ice cream at the grocery store, but certainly not at 7-11....Especially since someone is giving you charity you ought to be more careful about how you spend that.

Well, my mom gets food stamps.. like 350 every month. She's feeding me, my sister, my cousin, my uncle, and herself. It's really hard. We have home cooked meals every day, and we eat right. We just have a lot of mouths to feed, and two of those mouths are grown men..they eat a lot. Some people might be in different situations than it appears. Don't judge a book by it's cover. Some people sell their food stamps, so that could be why they are in those situations, or they are shopping at the wrong places.

I live off $60 a week. Honestly, the Angel Food Ministries has $30 for a week of dinners and I've went there quite a few times because I didn't have enough money. I actually know that I could get stamps but I figure there are people who need it more than me. I get WIC but that's for pregnancy nutrition. If I can do it, I know other people can.

i'm in australia so i dont know how much groceries are over there and what not but i know that 450US = approx 700AU and teenage boys eat ALOT of food.

I have 4 kids but they are all small and dont really eat alot but they eat propper home cooked meals every night and normally eat sandwiches for lunch etc and i would spend around 800 a month on food so i can only imagine how much teenage boys would cost to feed.

EDIT although i guess i buy formula and things in my groceries aswell which would make my bill a bit higher

I say it takes $300 per month to feed a grown man. Only by going to a survival rice and beans diet could anybody survive on $150 per month. Food doesn't cost what it used to. The price of things like bread and milk has trebled in the past couple of year where I live. When gas spiked, groceries spiked and stayed there, despite the current drop in gas prices. All this is corruption and price fixing, obviously. Government regulators just look the other way.

Most likely the mother of three or like most people on food stamps are selling their food stamps for money.

I have seen it so many times. Than they Plee that they don't get enough money to feed their kids.

My husband and I spend 100.00 a month on food and we eat for a whole month on that. And we eat healthy.

500 is more than we spend on a family of 4 and 2 dogs. Dont get me wrong we could spend more, but we could also spend less.

Its called planning your menu