Foodstamps and Junk foods

**Nana2two** · 02-09-2010, 12:41 PM

I went grocery shopping the other day. I had to buy a few things since i have my grandsons,since mommy is in California.
Of course the store was packed (krogers). Don't get me wrong, FS program is a much needed thing these days, but i really think they need to have more guidelines in place in what can be bought! I got behind a lady that used her FS card. Her bill was $484 dollars i bet at least $300 was junk food, all kinds of chips,cookies,hostess cupcakes 10/12 packs of soda. If you have kids in school i can understand getting chips and few items for lunches. She had no fruit,veggies,No frozen veggies, can raviolies. The rest was real high fatty meats, lots of hamburger, rib eye steaks,ribs, chicken.
We have so many over weight kids these days, it's true that alot do come from low income families. I really believe this adding to the problem of over weight kids.I just wish there was a way to combat the buying issue. I guess i would look at it so differently if i seen healthy foods on the belt.

**NikoSan999** · 02-09-2010, 12:54 PM

You should work in a grocery and see the stuff that comes across the belts and paid for with food stamps.

You can buy all the chips,cookies,hostess cupcakes 10/12 packs of soda and not buy a bar of soap or deodorant.

And no, I am not against them. But the misuse really pi$$es me off.

That's all I will say. We had one thread pulled for arguing.

**Russ** · 02-09-2010, 12:57 PM

I used to work in a small meat market and let me just tell you... There were folks that came in and you could tell, they NEEDED those food stamps.
Then there were "the others". They bought the BEST of everything. The most expensive steaks, the biggest turkeys,
They ate waaaay better than I did and I was the owners son!

**sabrelvssammy** · 02-09-2010, 12:59 PM

i worked at a grocery yrs ago (back when there really were food 'stamps' and the cards were just being introduced)...

it burned me to no end to watch the 'crap' come down the belt that are 'eligible' for purchase... the doritoes, cokes, candy...you are absolutely right...there are no 'rules' when it comes to what you can buy... and while i in no way mean to 'be-grudge' anyone of what they choose to eat or feed their families...but if 'I' and all other tax-payers are paying for this food i would appreciate it if WE didn't have to make all the sacrifices eating the .39 cent cans of generic green beans so they can stuff their faces with twinkies & ding-dongs... and then...when they are unfit an unhealthy they can go to the doctor and we can pick up that bill too....

I am just plain sick & tired of it....! But i also have to deal with all this crap on an even larger scale as i have many tenants that don't work...(let me rephrase that...WON'T work...has nothing to do with the economy...they've been this way for yrs).. so i (and you) get to pay for their rents, their supplemental utility bills coz they can't afford that heat or a/c bill when while the rest of us were suffering in the hot/cold temps they were nice and toasty warm in the wintertime or quite cool during those hot summer months in their own little homes....

food stamp assistance is only a tiny drop in a big bucket for those who have figured out how to 'screw' the system and 'screw' those of us who get up and go to work everyday....

and let me add...that i DO NOT think that all recipients of these types of programs are undeserving... there are some real troubled cases out there that truly do need the help...and those people i am more than happy and willing to lend a helping hand to... but to the majority that are abusing this whole system...well...THEY SUCK..! as does our gov't for allowing it...!

(sorry to hi-jack your thread...can you tell how i feel about this...? .. lol)....

p.s. TO THE GOVERNMENT: when you are done screwing around and ready to hire a 'gov't program czar'....i am your gal !!! haha.... crap will stop real quick...!

**WV_mom_of2** · 02-09-2010, 01:05 PM

If they have a buggy full of fruits and veggies, meats, and things to make meals like beans, pasta, etc. then I don't have a problem with them buying some junk food too. I like junk food! I do think they should try to stretch the food stamps as far as possible though. Instead of paying 2.50 for two boxes of Au Gratin potatoes, I'd rather see them pay that for 10 pounds of fresh potatoes. Instead of canned beans I'd like to see them buy dried ones. Instead of a box of 6 Little Debbie cakes I'd like to see at least a cake mix that you can make 30 cupcakes from.

If it were me getting them I'd do my best to stretch each month's amount into as many meals as possible. Course I'd use them to stockpile too! But I'd add in a little junk food.

I worked in a grocery store in high school. There was a family here who had 7 or 8 kids. They would send each child in with a 1.00 foodstamp to buy a five cent piece of candy. Of course you give them change for that. Then the parents would come in with all that change and buy cigarrettes.

And I think we should remember that there are A LOT of people on food stamps right now that worked for years and paid into the system. They are using them now because the economy has put them out of work for the time being. So they are sort of spending their own money while using them.

**Ceashels** · 02-09-2010, 01:22 PM

In my teens, I worked at a small neighborhood seafood and convenience store (some produce and alcohol). I was shocked that people would be using their food stamps to buy shrimp and lobster.

**Mom2-3** · 02-09-2010, 01:29 PM

I was behind a lady at the store this weekend. She had a FULL grocery cart with stuff I can't afford to buy and her total was over $400!! She paid with her stamp card (whatever it's called).

My budget for the month is just over $400! That is for 5 of us!

I don't know her situation and she doesn't know mine, but for a moment I was really jealous of those soda cans and bags of chips

**WV_mom_of2** · 02-09-2010, 01:34 PM

About this time last year money was VERY tight for us. I had used up most of my stockpile and was really scrimping at the grocery store. There were weeks where I only went and bought just exactly what we had to have for that week, no stockpiling, etc.

One week I was at the store with the five things that I had enough money to buy that week. A girl checked out in front of me with soda, one of those really expensive things where it has a bun, meat and cheese for one sandwich(kind of like an adult lunchable) and something else that I can't remember now and used food stamps. She paid more for her junk that I spent on the five things we needed for that week! I remember feeling so sorry for myself that day LOL. And a little mad at her too!

**Booklover** · 02-09-2010, 01:45 PM

On a related note, didn't I read somewhere that the government restricted what fruits and vegetables food stamp users could buy? That doesn't make sense-let them buy all the fresh fruit and veggies they want since that will benefit their families. So why is junk food unrestricted?

**mama2James** · 02-09-2010, 01:45 PM

I grew up on food stamps, if it weren't for that program and the local food pantries we would have been very hungry. My mother purchased mostly good foods for meals, and the normal amount of snack type items. I don't think she "abused" the system, but the dollars that she did spend could definitely have been put to better use. To this day, she doesn't meal plan, or shop by the sales, buy in bulk, use coupons or any of the cost saving measure that anyone on a low income should be doing. DH and I are solidly middle class, and I do ALL of those things, for heaven's sake!
I think that a good solution would be to have guideline of what can be bought with food stamps, similar to the WIC program for pregnant women and small children. That program dictates which foods and how many packages of each type can be purchased based on nutritional needs. As a tax payer, I would be much more comfortable with that kind of a set up.
No, I don't believe it's criminal to have a bag of chips, a frozen pizza or a 12 pack of soda in your grocery cart, but it's not ok when it's on the government's dime.

**Josephhgoins** · 02-09-2010, 01:48 PM

I see our entire welfare systems as screwed up beyond repair.

Once you get on assistance programs, we pay you to stay on them. PERIOD!!

I really like the idea that my taxes are going to help a working mother put food on her table through some rough times, but what kills me is this. We give her food stamps and might help her with rent and utilities. Do we do anything for her to help get a job? Do we help her with a car or bus fare? How about training to get a better job, do we help with that? Do we help her with Job Interview training? Help her with some clothing for an interview?

No, we feed and shelter her and say oh well to actually helping her get back into the game.

For the lazy ones that arn't even trying to get off we pay to have more babies and stay on.

As for the junk food, I believe that once you give someone something, its theirs to do as they please. If I give someone money for their food for the month and they buy junk food, then that is their business.

Does anyone know if there are any sort of basic nutrition classes taught with food stamps?

I know with WIC there are classes that must be taken before they get money for food. The class is considered part of the assistance.

**MomToTwoBoys** · 02-09-2010, 01:49 PM

I grew up as a child in the welfare program. With my mom and dad both working two jobs, we still didn't have enough money for the essentials. Alas, my mom used the FS program quite a bit. I think she still does, but she's disabled and unable to work.

Now that I'm not in the FS program, I can tell you this much:

The majority ruins it for the minority.

People that aren't in the FS program happen to glance upon someone spending almost all of their FS card on junk food, then they go on to believe that's how every member of the FS program handles their money. I'm not saying anyone does here, but from what I've observed in the past of people that weren't in the program, that's how they viewed it. This is the majority and alas, people like my family who actually bought scratch items (potatoes, meat, etc) were looked at in the same light as the others.

DH and I had a large conversation the other night about socialistic programs like welfare, Medicaid, Medicare, etc and about how a lot of these programs and their recipients directly mimic the makings of a communistic environment. While I won't get into that part of the conversation, I will say that the program does need a fix. Some believe it's way beyond repair, but it's not. It just takes people at the top who are being paid to run these programs to take the initiative to ensure that every person using the program is doing so to the best of its purpose.

Other people believe that too much big brother in the pockets of the little man makes for bad government, but when I see obese kids running around with parents who feed them nothing but snack cakes and pop, that kind of grinds my rear end raw.

Originally Posted by WV_mom_of2

If they have a buggy full of fruits and veggies, meats, and things to make meals like beans, pasta, etc. then I don't have a problem with them buying some junk food too. I like junk food! I do think they should try to stretch the food stamps as far as possible though. Instead of paying 2.50 for two boxes of Au Gratin potatoes, I'd rather see them pay that for 10 pounds of fresh potatoes. Instead of canned beans I'd like to see them buy dried ones. Instead of a box of 6 Little Debbie cakes I'd like to see at least a cake mix that you can make 30 cupcakes from.

If it were me getting them I'd do my best to stretch each month's amount into as many meals as possible. Course I'd use them to stockpile too! But I'd add in a little junk food.

I worked in a grocery store in high school. There was a family here who had 7 or 8 kids. They would send each child in with a 1.00 foodstamp to buy a five cent piece of candy. Of course you give them change for that. Then the parents would come in with all that change and buy cigarrettes.

And I think we should remember that there are A LOT of people on food stamps right now that worked for years and paid into the system. They are using them now because the economy has put them out of work for the time being. So they are sort of spending their own money while using them.

**mama2James** · 02-09-2010, 01:51 PM

Originally Posted by Booklover

On a related note, didn't I read somewhere that the government restricted what fruits and vegetables food stamp users could buy? That doesn't make sense-let them buy all the fresh fruit and veggies they want since that will benefit their families. So why is junk food unrestricted?

I have never heard of this. You can basically buy anything edible with food stamps, as long as it is not "hot and ready to eat". For example, you can buy a rotisserie chicken that the grocery store has cooked and then refrigerated, but not a hot one. At the local corner deli, you can buy a cold sub sandwich, but not a hot steak and cheese. Those are the only restrictions I know about.

**Dancing Lotus** · 02-09-2010, 01:52 PM

I know it's hard to believe but some people are just given too many food stamps. I know a single woman with no kids who gets 600 a month. She buys food for two households because she can't use them all herself. What does she buy? MOSTLY JUNK

**PlainCash4** · 02-09-2010, 01:59 PM

I agree with NikoSan. I work at Whole Foods and people use food stamps there. Of course i appreciate the business. It just seems they woulld go somewhere to stretch their dollars.