SNAP Challenge Results and Reflections

Our National Health Corps members recently participated in a weeklong SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) Challenge. The task is to only spend $30 on food during the seven days in order to get a better sense of the struggle faced by Americans living off food stamps. In addition, the simulation allows the participants to gain a sense of how difficult it is to make healthy choices on a limited budget. While this challenge does not come close to the barriers encountered by low-income families on a regular basis, it did provide participants a new perspective and greater understanding. Our members share some of their stories below:

Claire Scheffer

November 1st, 2015

2 sourdough rolls from Trader Joe’s - $0.66
Slices of Country Boule - $0.41
Pepperoni (13) - $0.38
Sauce (2 Tablespoons) - $0.30
Cheese (1/2 cup) - $0.64
Total: $2.39

November 2nd, 2015

Bagel - $1.19
Lettuce (¼ head) - $0.60
Dressing (2 tablespoons) - $0.15
Parmesan Cheese (sprinkle) - $0.15
Croutons (10) - $0.20
Total: $2.29

This week was one of self discovery. The self discovery that I have no idea how much food costs or how much I usually spend on food. I had the most difficulty calculating each meal because, for the most part, I do not think about how much I spend. I know that if I run out of food stamps I have money to make up the difference. I have never really had to adjust my eating habits to meet the needs of my wallet. It was hard to give up on foods that I wanted and sacrifice my own time to prepare the food.

This entire week was a battle between time and money. I have, in the past, paid extra for something that did not need to be assembled. I buy $4.50 salads and $2 pad thai boxes at Trader Joe’s to be able to sleep in an extra 15 minutes in the morning. And I like making things from scratch but most of the time, I am just too exhausted after serving at my host site to want to do any of it. I love the pizza dough I make myself. It is cheap, and one batch makes a lot of pizza. It takes hours, though, and after long days at work I want something easy, something I can throw into the oven and forget about. This week I ended up spending so much extra time on food that I sometimes chose nothing over spending the time and energy. Hence, there was no dinner on Sunday. Having more SNAP benefits means having more time to do what I want.

Liz Gore

I was extremely optimistic about the SNAP Challenge on Monday. My roommate and I had been to both Aldi and Trader Joe’s the day before, and had left feeling as though this week was going to be a breeze. Needless to say, it all went downhill from there. As an extremely sore loser, it pains me to report that I completely failed and lost the challenge.

My strategy for the challenge was to make a big batch of something and eat off it for the whole week. This meant that for the majority of the week I ate oatmeal for breakfast, rice and beans for lunch, and lentils for dinner. Apparently, if you eat lentils for 7 days in a row, the mushy texture starts tasting a lot like unpleasant baby food.

  
I tried to stick to this plan, but as usual, life got in the way. A prior commitment on Thursday night involved me buying dinner out, and after our service day on Friday, I could not resist chips and guacamole at a happy hour. Both of these contributed to my failure to stay under $30, and resulted in me spending about $45 throughout the week.

I am extremely thankful for the fact that if I go over my weekly SNAP budget, I have additional funds for food, a luxury I know many do not have. For me, being able to shop around for the cheapest food is not an issue, I have a car and time to spend at various grocery stores, a privilege not everyone has. If it were not for the reduced prices I found, I know I would have had a much more difficult time this week.

This week definitely brought to light the barriers that prevent those relying on SNAP benefits the ability to purchase and prepare healthy, nutritious meals. I know we took this challenge coming from a completely different place than those facing this as everyday reality, but the lessons we learned will allow us to further understand the challenges faced by the populations we are serving during our AmeriCorps term.