by Lindsey Burks, Marketing Associate
Feeding America asked
people across the nation one question – can you eat on just $4.50 a day?
Over 47 million Americans face this difficult task every day
because they rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (formerly
food stamps) to get enough to eat. So many of us have grown accustomed to
morning Starbucks coffee and eating dinner out, and we don’t often take the
time to reflect on the fact that an enormous number of people are struggling to
even get enough food on the table.
To encourage the public to get a sense of what life is like
for millions of low-income Americans facing hunger, Feeding America devised the
SNAP Challenge. By accepting this
challenge, participants commit to eating on a limited food budget – $4.50 a
day, or just $1.50 per meal.
Pete, our resident vegetarian and United Way CFO, took on
the SNAP Challenge and conquered it. However, his defeat didn't leave him
feeling great – instead he emerged with a new found understanding of just how
difficult it is for an individual, let alone a family, to eat healthy on that tight of a budget. Let’s
walk through his experience:
His first step – shopping! Following the rules of the
challenge, Pete bypassed membership stores, such as Costco, and headed straight
to Safeway and Big Lots. At Safeway, Pete focused on finding his breakfast and
lunch foods for the entire week. At the end of his trip, his cart was filled
with only 4 items: a box of oatmeal, a loaf of store-brand bread, a jar of
peanut butter and a jar of grape jelly. This weeks’ worth of breakfast and
lunch items cost a total of $8.27. Although Pete spent so little of his budget and
managed to buy the bulk of the food he would need for the week, the foods he
purchased had minimal nutritional value.
Dinner options were next on Pete’s list. As a vegetarian, he
did not need to worry about spending the lion share of his budget on meat, which
is often the biggest expense on the grocery list. Instead he headed straight to
Big Lots where he knew he could count on finding canned goods cheap. At $1.00
per can, Pete grabbed assorted beans and mixed vegetables.
Throughout the week, Pete began to appreciate the luxuries
he frequently enjoys; missing his family’s weekly pizza night was the roughest.
Aside from missing out on luxuries, he realized the toll high-sodium and
high-sugar canned foods can take. Pete exclaimed, “You can get by for a week
and have it not be very disruptive but if you had to eat this way for even a
month, let alone if it was your lifestyle, you would begin to feel the effects.”
Working in the nonprofit industry, Pete already had a strong
appreciation for the services provided by food banks but during the SNAP
challenge, he realized even more the vitality of those services. The food that
SNAP participants can afford are typically not foods with nutritional value,
leading to medical issues such as diabetes and high blood pressure, and more
expensive issues in the long run. We have an obligation – we must provide
better locally and ensure that our food banks are well stocked so that we can
eliminate hunger in our community.
Although Hunger Action Month is coming to an end, there is
so much you can continue to do to raise awareness and fight hunger. Spread the
word about our South Sound 211 Center; by simply dialing 2-1-1, people can be
connected to food banks or apply for the basic food assistance program. Don’t
need help but want to lend your hand? Check out our volunteer center for ways
to get involved at your local food bank: http://www.volunteerpiercecounty.org/
