Congresswoman Jackie Speier To Live on Food Stamp Budget
Speier will live on a food budget of $4.50 a day.
Congresswoman Jackie Speier plans to spend the next five days limiting herself to eating on a budget of $4.50 per day -- which she says is the budget of a typical food stamps recipient.
At a community roundtable in Millbrae this morning, Speier, D-San Francisco/San Mateo, said she hopes her experience will help highlight some of the difficulties facing the estimated 45 million Americans who use food stamps to survive.
"It is the lifeline of people who are poor," Speier said. "The alarming part about this is that the numbers are growing."
The poverty rate in the U.S. is at a historic high of more than 15 percent, and roughly 100,000 people in San Mateo County use food stamps,
Speier said.
Under two separate budget proposals currently being considered in Congress, the food stamp program could face huge budget cuts, Speier said.
"The program is in jeopardy right now," she said.
Speier displayed some of the items she was able to purchase for her first day of living on a food stamp budget: a bag of coffee and a loaf of bread from the Dollar Warehouse; a can of Campbell's low sodium chicken noodle soup; and a can of sweet peas, possibly to put in a tuna casserole later in the week.
"And this is my treat for the week," Speier said, holding up a box of microwave popcorn packets.
May Fong, chairwoman of the Consumer Education Department at City College of San Francisco, said that making nutritionally sound choices when shopping for food is important, but that people on food stamps rarely have the time or means to comparison shop, or consider alternatives to ready-made meals or fast food.
"Nutrition is secondary," Fong said. "You also have to think about survival."
Speier said she plans to chronicle her five-day experience on her Faceboook page at http://www.facebook.com/#!/JackieSpeier.
- Bay City News
John Wade
1:05 pm on Monday, October 31, 2011
Its a great idea. I'd like to see all of the budget committee try it for a month, and the 1% people. Just for a reality check. It surprises me to hear that 1/6 of the people in San Mateo County are on food stamps though. One of the richest counties in America.
Claire Yragui
7:38 am on Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Thank-you for sticking up for poor people. We need more people like you. I had to go on welfare and foodstamps after I left an abusive relationship. It was extremely difficult to feed my three children on the little amount they give you. I think the card system they have in place now deters many from abusing the system as they had in the past.
ian butler
8:00 am on Tuesday, November 1, 2011
I commend congresswoman Speier for taking this challenge. Hopefully it will give her a deeper understanding of what the poor need to survive. For an in-depth account I recommend Barbara Ehrenreich's excellent book "Nickel and Dimed".
Bhatman
10:55 am on Tuesday, November 1, 2011
I am unimpressed with this type of grandstanding. I suggest that Representative Speier have a healthy meal to give her the strength to FIGHT against corporate welfare, union cronyism, and the lobbyist that corrupt our political system. Rather then fight for a few more crumbs for the poor, get the pigs away from the trough so government can really help people! It's pathetic to watch part of the political machine tell us she intends to lubricate the gravy train with a little less oil.
Jennifer Tegnerud
8:16 am on Thursday, November 3, 2011
Since when is a bag of coffee considered nutritious?? Also I'm sure that the food stamps go alot further in other states or counties than San Mateo, maybe it should be reevaluated on a state level and not federal. But if Jackie can make it on this budget it almost shows that there is no need to change it.
Debra Smith
9:41 am on Friday, November 4, 2011
I believe that the food stamp system is not for all the poor just the ones who no how to work the system. I think they need to revamp the food stamp system, the program is good but it definitely needs a overhaul especially to determine whom receives FS.
Ellen Jaffe Jones
11:56 am on Tuesday, November 15, 2011
You need my new and popular book, "Eat Vegan on $4 a Day." It's how I've lived my life for 30 years placing in 5K races, doing my first marathon last year at 58 while I watched my mom, aunt & BOTH sisters get breast cancer, in addition to heart disease, diabetes and Alzheimer's. This really works!!!! No magic bullets. Foods are all at Walmart!!!