I’ve been complaining non-stop about the quickly escalating price of food. It’s been going up as quickly as gas. I’m not sure which is worse really. But Money @ CNN had this article about this woman not being able to live on $280/month food stamps for her family. I found the sidebar showing the increase in bread, bananas, and milk completely on target if a bit low. I pay that much or more for all items on the list, with milk being above $4/gallon.
I read the article and was shocked that she found it difficult in DC to feed her and her child on $280/month. I know I could do it for DH and I. In fact for the past year I’ve been feeding us on $250/month well. We eat lots of meat, veggies, fruits, and dairy (cheese and yogurt).
The article says for a family of four thrifty eating is $567/month. I’d like to know who spends that much? Most families I know spend as much for a family of four as DH and I. They spend maybe $200-300/month. So why is this young woman having so much trouble feeding herself and her baby for $280?
My only guess is that she’s eating a lot of convience, pre-packaged foods which are easy to make but expensive to buy. And instead of using coupons to buy them she’s paying full price. DH and I don’t coupon shop, but if I did only buy coupon food stuff like mac and cheese, hamburger helper, frozen pizza, etc, I bet I could come in under $100/month for the two of us. I know I could because a lot of couponers do.
I think it’s ridiculous that people on food stamps are complaining about the cost of food, while thinking that spending $567/month for a family of 4 normal. I think we need to reconsider how to eat. We should be teaching these people how to stretch a buck while shopping. Perhaps people like this young woman should go to couponing websites like www.thecouponmom.com or www.hotcouponworld.com to learn how to combine coupons with loss leaders and stretch her $280/month. I do it without using coupons except for specific items. And she could too.
How much do you spend for groceries in a month?
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26 responses so far ↓
1 Jim ~ mydebtblog.com // May 21, 2008 at 6:48 pm
I base the food budget on $10 a day, which averages around $300 a month. We sometimes use coupons and take advantage of sales, but this also includes our eating out which some might put under entertainment. I don’t see how someone on food stamps can’t make it considering they’re not even using their own money to feed themselves. Personally I don’t think the federal government has any place in feeding people, leave it to local food pantry in the community.
2 Rete // May 21, 2008 at 7:10 pm
It seems outrageous to us, but if you think about it, she probably doesn’t have internet access at home to find information about shopping smarter. I’m amazed at how many people simply have no concept of how to cook, only use a microwave.
also, at the number of people in line to use the internet at the library, only to play online games or talk to their friends on myspace.
3 Anonymous // May 21, 2008 at 7:54 pm
We could also factor in that since she is on food stamps and lives in DC she is probably in a situation where she is in the inner city with limited resources to get to several grocery stores where she could comparison shop. She probably makes the bulk of her purchases at the local conveience store (which stocks convenience foods) because she can walk there. I think someone else mentioned that she probably does not have internet which would preclude her from some of those savings strategies. Plus, with regards to using food stamps, if her mother did it before her and her grandmother before her, it might be all that she knows, a way of life and she has not been challenged to change.
I think it is easy to judge others sometimes based on our lives and not on theirs.
4 cinzea // May 21, 2008 at 9:38 pm
Right on, anon! Most people don’t know that folks on food stamps do not have a car, do not get a newspaper whereby they can clip coupons and they do not have internet access (if a library is not close by). They have to rely on a local food deli within walking distance, that overcharges the poor and only offers packaged, unhealthy food.
Yesterday I bought 2 pounds of California cherries, which are now in season, and the cost was $12.08!!!!! Yes, you read this right. I live in NY and to truck the fruit to us raised the cost prohibitively. I was able to buy the cherries on sale (because the flyer is emailed to me weekly) for only $6.97 which is STILL an astronomical price! I need to buy from local farmers BUT I wanted the fruit.
I’m averaging $16-20 a day for 2 people. I NEVER go out to a restaurant but will get take-out once every six months.
To anyone reading this-a news show had a great idea to help the hungry. Every week we shop, buy just one item for the poor. Put it in a special bag and when you get a whole bag full, donate it to a local pantry. That’s what I’m doing. I’m getting them fruit juice, canned or dried milk, canned fruit, oatmeal-whatever is healthy.
We’ve got to start helping others. It’s really getting bad out there.
5 frugal zeitgeist // May 21, 2008 at 10:54 pm
You’re on a roll with the outstanding topics. Well done.
I figure on $30/week for one most days/two once or twice a week, plus about $80 once a month for peanut butter, frozen chicken, bread, and other things that are far cheaper at Trader Joe’s. I don’t count the periodic trips to Costco on the West Coast, which usually result in many pounds of coffee and almonds.
6 wicked // May 21, 2008 at 11:47 pm
“So why is this young woman having so much trouble feeding herself and her baby for $280?”
Because you’re not counting what she’s spending on cigarettes, alcohol and lottery tickets.
Okay, I was being snarky on purpose. I know a few people who are abusing the food stamp system.
The gov’t should provide free food for the poor at food pantries. No food stamps or cash…just food.
7 JB // May 22, 2008 at 12:36 pm
I spend close to $600 / month on a family of 3. However, that’s because another hobby of mine is natural bodybuilding… which means I have to buy a lot of meat just for myself. I eat meat (chicken or beef) at least 4 times a day right now.
But, I also believe (for some odd reason) that food isn’t something you should skimp on. Food is a necessity and I’m willing to spend a little extra on it.
8 SE // May 22, 2008 at 1:14 pm
I budget $1000/month for me and DW (!)
9 LivingAlmostLarge // May 23, 2008 at 10:05 pm
My mom has tried teaching people using food stamps how to shop and buy cheap but quality foods. She was a social worker and did lots of free work. I also volunteered and still do at a food bank. Many people have no idea that rice and beans are cheap and healthy to eat.
I’ve also lived in the slummy area and there are more than bodegas. But you have to be willing to walk there and carry your groceries. I’ve done so. Problem? People don’t want to. And DC has a great metro system.
Another thing I don’t recall ever eating shrimp and crab legs when my mom and I were broke. She was a single parent but my grandparents who drove a bus said “there will always be food on our table for you.” And there WAS. I know we made do with very little money.
And she never was on assistance even with my expensive medications, single parenthood, no child support, and paying alimony!
So yes I’m not sure how someone gettin $280/month + $65/month WIC (specifically for milk and formula) can be starving?
I feed 3 people on $300/month in a HCOLA. I shop very carefully and have been using coupons to not spend on any toiletries. I also eat more meatless meals or cheaper cuts than even 1 year ago. And so someone whose getting help is spending more and finding it difficult than I do? She’s supposedly feeding herself and a 4 month old baby!
Also prescribed formula can be covered by insurance. And $280/month does not cover diapers. Diapers cannot be bought with food stamps or WIC.
I will admit perhaps she isn’t struggling, but the writer makes it seem that way. It could be that no longer is shrimp and crab on the menu, but she’s not complaining. And the writer is overexaggerating, but still.
Do people on food stamps need to be eating Shrimp and Crab????? I don’t even eat that on a regular monthly basis.
10 Meg // May 26, 2008 at 9:42 pm
LAL I totally agree with you. If Americans want to waste their money on junk food and prepackaged meals/dinners then that’s OK by me I guess. But if the government is paying for your food and/or you’re having trouble feeding your family on what you earn, then you have no excuse not to learn how to budget and grocery shop effectively.
I can’t imagine not being able to get by on $280/mo for you and one baby. I could feed myself and a baby on HALF that, if not less. She needs to buy cheap, nutritious, long lasting staples like beans, rice, pasta, vegetables, and potatoes. Skip expensive empty calories like bottled drinks, chips, cookies, crackers, yogurt, popcicles, et al.
(Another thought: she could actually use some of her own income to supplement her food stamps allotment; or she could visit one of the dozens of food banks in the DC area).
For all you talking about her probably not having the internet and probably growing up shopping a certain way: Being ignorant is an excuse, but it’s not a good one. And DC has an incredible public transit system, so I’m not buying the “she might have to walk to buy groceries and can only make it to the overpriced 7-11″ either.
Also I have to say, food stamps is NOT supposed to provide 100% of your food needs and wants indefinitely. It’s not SUPPOSED to cover your entire grocery bill! One woman in that article actually complained her food stamps weren’t enough for crab meat and shrimp cocktail anymore. Give me a break.
11 LivingAlmostLarge // May 27, 2008 at 7:25 pm
That’s my point. It doesn’t cover diapers or formula really. Formula is mostly covered by WIC. And Diapers isn’t covered by foodstamps. So she really has to buy $280 of Food for 1 person.
12 Pepperina // May 28, 2008 at 2:38 am
To be fair, the article says “Gone are the occasional treats of shrimp or crabmeat,” not that she bought such things on a regular basis, and that she has also started making more stews and soups in order to stretch her food dollar. I’m sure every one of us has, at least on occasion, purchased “treat” items at the grocery when money was less tight.
13 Pepperina // May 28, 2008 at 2:45 am
Also, she wasn’t necessarily complaining. For all we know from the way it was worded in the article, she said “I used to be able to enjoy occasional treats like shrimp or crabmeat, but of course these days I try to limit my purchases to the real necessities.”
14 KC // May 28, 2008 at 4:04 am
$280/month does seem a bit steep for a single woman and her baby, but one has to remember that she is living in Washington D.C. Cost of living is extremely high there compared to a majority of places in the country. If she is buying “healthy” foods like fresh fruit, vegetables it’s going to add up to a larger amount than in a place like Louisiana or Texas.
15 LivingAlmostLarge // May 28, 2008 at 5:41 pm
I live in a COLA easily as high or higher than DC. So I know what I’m talking about for prices.
But I do agree it’s possible the woman isn’t complaining but the writer made it seem that way. But it still is a lot of money for one person.
16 Chargrylls // May 29, 2008 at 7:43 pm
I gave my two cents earlier in the “Anonymous” post but $280 is only $70.00 per week. With convenience foods at $3-5 each and a gallon of milk $3.99 = Let’s use the high end $5 x 7 (days per week) = $35.00 + $3.99 per gallon of milk = $39.00 plus breakfast foods, rough estimate $20/week + lunch items $15.00 week, plus baby food items like Cheerios, or baby food, or treats like Gerber fruit chews $1.99./box = We are already over $70 per week. It adds up fast.
Again I think it is easy to judge others from your own perspective.
17 LivingAlmostLarge // May 29, 2008 at 8:14 pm
Chargrylls, read the article. She gets free lunch because she’s learning to be a cook at a school. So that’s only 60 meals/month! $280 is for her food and she gets $65/month WIC which is for milk, cheese, and formula.
That is $345/month / 60 meals = $5.75/meal. If you can’t eat for $5.75/meal something is wrong.
And hence why I am saying don’t eat convience foods. Why is she becoming a cook if she can’t cook?
A person on a thread I started said here’s some basic food staples
5 lbs rice
5 lbs beans
5 canned veggies
5 cans of soup
4 loaves of bread
5 lbs ground beef
5 lbs chicken
Potentially these are not even $100 and those would be staples for the month.
According to your calculations she’d basically only be eating convience foods, of which there are tons of coupons for and you shouldn’t be paying full price for.
18 Chargrylls // May 29, 2008 at 9:05 pm
LAL - true she shouldn’t be paying for those things when coupons are out there, she shouldn’t be eating convenience foods, she should be eating healthier, but we all do things we shouldn’t do.
Great blog by the way.
19 Livingalmostlarge // May 30, 2008 at 2:24 am
I think another problem is that assuming she eats convience foods when she is trying to become a chef is crazy. I wonder why she isn’t cooking more?
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