# No Food Stamp Increase? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [April 27, 2020, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-food-stamp-increase/852687 "2020-04-27T19:42:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![MortSahlFan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3bc359/32.png) [@MortSahlFan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MortSahlFan)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2020, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-food-stamp-increase/852687/1 "2020-04-27T19:42:05Z")
Not even a few bucks? Food is pretty important. The 1% will find a way to get most of this money. And don’t be confused by the term, “small business”, which only means under 500 employees. ---
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2020, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-food-stamp-increase/852687/2 "2020-04-27T21:19:23Z")
Why would a person’s body need more food now than he or she did prior to this pandemic? ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2020, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-food-stamp-increase/852687/3 "2020-04-27T21:24:17Z")
> [@UltraVires](#): > > Why would a person’s body need more food now than he or she did prior to this pandemic? Lots of people with jobs qualify for food stamps because they don’t make enough money to do everything they need to do (including eat). Rather infamously, this includes some junior enlisted military personnel. If some family man/woman lost their low-paying job due to the quarantine, food stamps plus unemployment (which they may or may not be eligible for) may not be enough. ---
**Author:** ![MortSahlFan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3bc359/32.png) [@MortSahlFan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MortSahlFan)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2020, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-food-stamp-increase/852687/4 "2020-04-27T21:30:59Z")
> [@UltraVires](#): > > Why would a person’s body need more food now than he or she did prior to this pandemic? Because they have no cash coming in. No one can live off of just food stamps, which is probably why they call it supplemental. ---
**Author:** ![Bill\_Door](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@Bill\_Door](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bill_Door)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 10:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-food-stamp-increase/852687/5 "2020-04-28T10:26:55Z")
> [@UltraVires](#): > > Why would a person’s body need more food now than he or she did prior to this pandemic? Children may have been getting breakfast and lunch at the now-closed schools. Although some schools are doing outreach programs to supply boxed meals to former students the logistics of getting to them during a pandemic are beyond some people’s capabilities, and not every school is providing meals. Children need food even if they’re not in school. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-food-stamp-increase/852687/6 "2020-04-28T11:49:02Z")
Ah, but there is a food stamp benefits increase. > **[Families receiving food stamps to see increase in benefits, USDA says](https://abc3340.com/news/nation-world/families-receiving-food-stamps-to-see-increase-in-benefits-usda-says-04-23-2020)** > > Food stamp recipients will start seeing an increase of up to 40% in benefits now that the USDA is issuing emergency allotment supplements to American households. According to the USDA, an additional $2 billion was provided by the federal government... And it’s real. I just received $200 in SNAP benefits, my state’s maximum for a single person. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-food-stamp-increase/852687/7 "2020-04-28T12:52:40Z")
> [@MortSahlFan](#): > > Because they have no cash coming in. No one can live off of just food stamps, which is probably why they call it supplemental. No, you still need things like toilet paper, which food stamps don’t pay for. But since it’s seldom on the shelf these days maybe that’s irrelevant. If you receive the _maximum_ food stamp benefit yes, you _can_ survive on just that food-wise. It’s a boring, monotonous diet and not a lot of fun, but you can do it IF you have some notion of how to cook and access to a minimal kitchen. Lots of beans, rice, cheap bread, potatoes, onions… When my spouse and I were in the position I was going into the back yard and pulling dandelion greens to supplement what we were buying because they were free and green and you start craving stuff like that. Given how carb-heavy such a diet is it may not be particularly healthy for people like diabetics. It may be low in fresh fruits and vegetables, too, which also is not optimal for anyone. Even if food stamps will cover your food you still need cash, though. Also, there are tricks like using vinegar and baking soda for cleaning things - you can’t buy commercially made cleaner with food stamps but you can buy vinegar and baking soda with them to make your own cleaners. Additionally, a lot of people on food stamps supplement with things like food pantries and soup kitchens, along with things like free food programs at schools. If you aren’t supposed to leave the home, though, (outside of grocery shopping) you won’t be getting anything from those places. Increasing the food stamp allotment lets those folks go out and buy the food they need that they are no longer getting from those places. ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-food-stamp-increase/852687/8 "2020-04-28T13:30:49Z")
Another increase for the limited supply of some essentials, which sometimes means buying the more expensive product then the generic store brand, which around here it seems like the store brands are the first to go. ---
**Author:** ![MortSahlFan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3bc359/32.png) [@MortSahlFan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MortSahlFan)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-food-stamp-increase/852687/9 "2020-04-28T13:57:01Z")
Food has gone up… In some cases, double the original price (I’ve been going to the same place for decades). I just think its crazy how 6 TRILLION (our money) is signed, but you MIGHT get $1,200, and who knows when. Harvard turned down 40 million, LA Lakers turned down millions, and who knows how many else. I’m guessing most will accept it. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-food-stamp-increase/852687/10 "2020-04-28T14:00:29Z")
> [@UltraVires](#): > > Why would a person’s body need more food now than he or she did prior to this pandemic? This is one of the most disgusting things I have read on these boards. ---
**Author:** ![Folacin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folacin/32/3195_2.png) [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-food-stamp-increase/852687/11 "2020-04-28T14:37:09Z")
> [@MortSahlFan](#): > > Harvard turned down 40 million, LA Lakers turned down millions, and who knows how many else. I’m guessing most will accept it. The Lakers \*returned \* millions when they realized it was a PR problem, not aware of the Harvard case. ---
**Author:** ![MortSahlFan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3bc359/32.png) [@MortSahlFan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MortSahlFan)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-food-stamp-increase/852687/12 "2020-04-28T18:39:41Z")
> [@Folacin](#): > > The Lakers \*returned \* millions when they realized it was a PR problem, not aware of the Harvard case. Right, I’m just wondering how many thousands of rich corporations we DONT know about