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[levious]

What? Buying fresh produce/meats/juices is more expensive than buying pre-packaged, boxed items.

only if you consider Steak-ums equivalent to Rib-eye... and even then, by weight not sure how close the cost is. There's not all that much meat in a box of steak-ums.

Juice you have a point, frozen concentrate is always cheaper.

 

[Technosteve]

I am outraged that they don't buy government cheese and fall in line to stereotypes about the urban poor.

 

[Snowman Prophet of Doom]

Fresh food from Whole Foods is more expensive than prepacked items from a local grocer.

If you read the article, though, you see that they don't only shop at Whole Foods; they go all over the place.

 

[Hawkian]

Fresh food from Whole Foods is more expensive than prepacked items from a local grocer.

Prepacked items from a local grocer.

Please price this out for me. Not simply in terms of money paid at the register, but in cost over how many days of what kind of nutritional value.

Otherwise, I don't know how you can expect anyone to believe a line like that, even with the admittedly shitty premium Whole Foods puts on everything.

If you hadn't said a local grocer, but "the generics available at Wal-Mart," you'd have a

Spoiler

still extremely shitty

point.

 

[WanderingWind]

Fresh food from Whole Foods is more expensive than prepacked items from a local grocer.

That is entirely dependent on what you buy, and how much you put into preparing it. It's funny to me, that people on food stamps are often referred to as 'lazy,' yet here is a group of people who undoubtedly put some work into their situation, and they're still getting derided.

It'd be a hell of a lot lazier for them to buy the more expensive pre-packaged fake mash potatoes, than going through the effort of peeling and cooking the potatoes.

 

[nyong]

On one hand, I can't even afford to eat like that. And I'm fairly certain I don't qualify for food stamps. On the other hand, at least they're eating healthy foods and preparing meals from scratch. It's a wash.

 

[CharlieDigital]

On one hand, I can't even afford to eat like that.

You don't have $150/mo to spend on fresh foods?

I don't get your statement. If you have $150, you can afford to eat like that. Whether you do or don't is more a matter of your own initiative to find good produce at good prices and use your culinary skills to prepare meals.

Are you saying your food budget is < $150/mo?

 

[quaere]

A lot of places hiring for retail/service don't want to hire obviously overqualified workers because they know that as soon as the market turns around they'll bail on them. So they're hiring the same students/high-school grads as before. A Bachelors does you no favours in a situation like this.

I landed a work at home, pays more than $10/hr job earlier this year at the height of the recession without too much effort...might have been lucky, but, who knows.

Unemployed GAF, you can PM if interested. Bachelors required but not a specific major/experience.

 

[nyong]

You don't have $150/mo to spend on fresh foods?

I don't get your statement. If you have $150, you can afford to eat like that. Whether you do or don't is more a matter of your own initiative to find good produce at good prices and use your culinary skills to prepare meals.

Are you saying your food budget is < $150/mo?

$150 for a single person? Or is this particular group buying in bulk and sharing the cost? The chances of me being able to stretch $150 on fresh salmon, Thai curry sauce, and coconut milk (etc) every meal of every day is about nill.

 

[WanderingWind]

$150 for a single person? Or is this particular group buying in bulk and sharing the cost? The chances of me being able to stretch $150 on fresh salmon, Thai curry sauce, and coconut milk (etc) every meal of every day is about nill.

Seriously, buy the Joy of Cooking. You can absolutely make similar choices for that budget, if you learn to cook. Of course, you're not going to eat salmon for every meal. You're not a bear.



Are you?

 

[nyong]

Are you?

The point, obviously, is that these people are eating exotic foods every day (?). They aren't eating cheap, government subsidized corn. I won't say it's absolutely impossible to eat good foods every meal on the cheap, but until I see a breakdown of their grocery bills I'm not buying it.

 

[Dartastic]

Sure. If you are disabled, have dependents to feed, homeless, elderly, etc., you have a bigger need. If you are an able bodied, college educated, single person who does not want to give up his taste for wild raised salmon and gourmet ice cream, you have a lesser need.

Yes, there is obviously a greater "need" in situations like that, but I'm not talking about situations like those. People with that "need" get more food stamps anyway. What I'm talking about is the amount of calories that each person requires. Caloric need varies from person to person. So while one person may need to take in more calories to live, others need less. Since it's pretty much impossible to determine how many calories each person needs, the government gives a base line amount of money to everyone depending on their circumstances. Has the thought ever passed your mind that perhaps they're eating LESS food than other people, because they a)need less and b)are making a choice to eat healthier, better foods?

Which is why one should budget for necessities and not luxuries, especially when using other people's money.

See above. Perhaps instead of eating a giant meal for breakfast, a giant meal for lunch, and a giant meal for dinner, they're doing what I do, which is usually something like a banana or some eggs for breakfast, a yogurt and maybe some other small thing for lunch, then they go all out a bit more for dinner.

Enlighten me again as to how this is "narrow minded"

Because eating habits vary from person to person, and it's impossible to determine how each person eats. See the rest of my argument above, I don't feel like repeating myself for a third time.

No, the difference is that she's not on any government assistance since she has marketable skills and is putting them to work. Also, why use a story from the Daily Fail to prove your point?

Well, I think we can both agree that she needs more food than most people. Yes, I know she's not on food stamps, but if she WAS, she'd need more than most people. I used her to illustrate that it's impossible to determine what each person needs to eat each month. She obviously needs more (I used an extreme example, I know) while I obviously need a lot less. It's impossible to determine this. Also, remember that when the benefits run out for the month, they're OUT. It's not like we're using them for all these things then shopping out of our own pocket. I'm broke, as are most of my friends. So yeah, we may eat nice for a while. But we still budget ourselves as we can't really afford to eat much outside of what we're allotted.

Speaking as a fully employed member pullling in decent loot from a financial institute, I have to say I find your philistine attitudes just wonderful.

We just sucked your stupid asses dry to the tune of $899 billion dollars, and you're bitching about wasting your tax dollars on poor people eating fish in a video game forum.

Maybe time to prioritize your personal battles?

I'm just lapping this shit up.

For fucks sake YES.

A lot of places hiring for retail/service don't want to hire obviously overqualified workers because they know that as soon as the market turns around they'll bail on them. So they're hiring the same students/high-school grads as before. A Bachelors does you no favours in a situation like this.

That's the situation I'm in, sadly. I'm in this weird middle ground where I'm overqualified for lots of stuff, but I'm under qualified for stuff as well. I've had jobs tell me to my face that they wouldn't hire me because I'm way overqualified. That sucks.

 

[WanderingWind]

The point, obviously, is that these people are eating exotic foods every day (?). They aren't eating cheap, government subsidized corn. I won't say it's absolutely impossible to eat good foods every meal on the cheap, but until I see a breakdown of their grocery bills I'm not buying it.

Right. Again, they're eating foods you consider "exotic," even though they are not. I can't think of a nice way of saying this, but your ignorance concerning food, food preparation and feeding oneself properly on a budget, does not mean others are so unlearned.

Now, before you fly off the handle, I am not, repeat AM NOT, calling you stupid, nor inferring such. America's general lack of education on those topics is well known. It's not something that is generally taught in schools, and is a dying art among most people. It's not your fault.

However, for your own edification, your own health and your pocketbook, you really need to research these things a little more. It really can save you so much money in the long run, if you only put a little effort into it.

 

[CharlieDigital]

$150 for a single person? Or is this particular group buying in bulk and sharing the cost? The chances of me being able to stretch $150 on fresh salmon, Thai curry sauce, and coconut milk (etc) every meal of every day is about nill.

This is an assumption and highly unlikely. The article doesn't mention the frequency or a meal-by-meal, day-by-day menu but one would have to assume that they're not eating salmon three times a day (unless you're a bear :lol)

Curry sauces and coconut milk, as an example, are ridiculously cheap if you shop them at Asian/ethnic markets. Google search your location and find the nearest Asian/ethnic market and marvel at the "exotic" (and cheap!) food choices you have before you. I am going to go out on a limb and guess that most people think of some of these ingredients as "exotic" or expensive because their experiences with them are mostly when they go out to eat and they rarely procure said ingredients for their own use. That's going to skew your perception of the cost of canned coconut milk or curry sauces.

That said, I don't understand the issue at hand here. If these folks are able to make it work on the meager benefits, what is the issue?

 

[nyong]

Right. Again, they're eating foods you consider "exotic," even though they are not. I can't think of a nice way of saying this, but your ignorance concerning food, food preparation and feeding oneself properly on a budget, does not mean others are so unlearned.

Now, before you fly off the handle, I am not, repeat AM NOT, calling you stupid, nor inferring such. America's general lack of education on those topics is well known. It's not something that is taught in schools, and is a dying art among most people. It's not your fault.

However, for your own edification, your own health and your pocketbook, you really need to research these things a little more. It really can save you so much money in the long run, if you only put a little effort into it.

Dude, I'm not angry at you. It's amusing that you are absolutely insistent that I can eat exotic/speciality organic foods $1.66 per meal, though.

The fact is, when I walk into a grocery store in Eugene, OR looking for fresh salmon I'm going to pay a hefty premium for it. Same for coconut milk. Same with organic anything. My "ignorance" stems from direct personal experience. I've recently considered eating like the Tarahumara or the Kenyans while I'm marathon training. They eat on the cheap and appear quite healthy.

Revisit this thread when you move out and no longer have mom to do the shopping for you.

 

[Snowman Prophet of Doom]

To bolster CharlieDigital's point: the article actually mentions them buying Asian food at an Asian market!

 

[nyong]

That said, I don't understand the issue at hand here. If these folks are able to make it work on the meager benefits, what is the issue?

If they can, there is no issue.

 

[evil solrac v3.0]

The point, obviously, is that these people are eating exotic foods every day (?). They aren't eating cheap, government subsidized corn. I won't say it's absolutely impossible to eat good foods every meal on the cheap, but until I see a breakdown of their grocery bills I'm not buying it.

the article doesn't go into detail whether theyactually are eating like this every day, i think teh actual point of the article is how some (most?) of them are ashamed of having to get food stamps.

 

[slit]

To bolster CharlieDigital's point: the article actually mentions them buying Asian food at an Asian market!

I know, right. I know around where I live we have a place called the Strip District where you can buy lots of ethnic foods very cheap. I go down there to shop every other Saturday and find great bargains.

 

[nyong]

the article doesn't go into detail whether theyactually are eating like this every day, i think teh actual point of the article is how some (most?) of them are ashamed of having to get food stamps.

Another thing the article does not address is whether they are actually eating on $150 per month, or if the foodstamps are helping to support an even more expensive appetite.

 

[CharlieDigital]

Dude, I'm not angry at you. It's amusing that you are absolutely insistent that I can eat exotic/speciality organic foods $1.66 per meal, though.

This simple math is probably insufficient given that they are not likely to eat foods that are nearly as expensive at a meal like breakfast. You can buy a box of organic oatmeal and get by on that for breakfast if you want to be frugal and nutritious.

For me, personally, breakfast is the cheapest meal of the day. I have a slice of toast with jam and a scrambled egg. Say a carton of 12 eggs costs $2.50 and a loaf of Arnold's 100% whole wheat bread is on sale for $2.50. A can of strawberry jam (small one is around $2.50 as well). For a total of $7.50, I can feed myself for breakfast for 12 days at least. That's $.63/meal.

In addition, you're making an assumption about the frequency of consumption of these high effort meals with these so called "exotic" ingredients. You're jumping to conclusions about how often these folks have salmon and what not.

If they can, there is no issue.

They can. Why are you posting here?

 

[WanderingWind]

Dude, I'm not angry at you. It's amusing that you are absolutely insistent that I can eat exotic/speciality organic foods $1.66 per meal, though.

Revisit this thread when you move out and no longer have mom to do the shopping for you.

It's always fun to watch ignorance explode into full-out stupid. :lol

EDIT: I feed myself and my wife on a budget. If you give a crap about yourself and your health, you might actually want to look into learning how to make that sort of thing happen, too.

 

[Deleted member 22576]

Yeah, if you shop at local farmer's markets and the like you can absolutely eat well on the cheap.
There is nothing exotic or special about any of the things mentioned in this article. These are just people who know how to shop and cook.

You can do it even cheaper if there is a community garden nearby.

 

[AlternativeUlster]

The only people I see arguing against food stamps are people who never has been in a situation where they ever needed them. People need to eat. What's so wrong with that?

 

[nyong]

They can. Why are you posting here?

You're assuming that they're eating your hypothetical $0.63/meal breakfast with absolutely no supporting evidence from the article.

She applied for food stamps last summer, and since then she's used her $150 in monthly benefits for things like fresh produce, raw honey and fresh-squeezed juices from markets near her house in the neighborhood of Hampden, and soy meat alternatives and gourmet ice cream from a Whole Foods a few miles away.

Fresh produce, raw honey, and gourmet ice cream from a notoriously expensive healthfood store does not sound like pinching pennies to me.

 

[WanderingWind]

This simple math is probably insufficient given that they are not likely to eat foods that are nearly as expensive at a meal like breakfast. You can buy a box of organic oatmeal and get by on that for breakfast if you want to be frugal and nutritious.

For me, personally, breakfast is the cheapest meal of the day. I have a slice of toast with jam and a scrambled egg. Say a carton of 12 eggs costs $2.50 and a loaf of Arnold's 100% whole wheat bread is on sale for $2.50. A can of strawberry jam (small one is around $2.50 as well). For a total of $7.50, I can feed myself for breakfast for 12 days at least. That's $.63/meal.

In addition, you're making an assumption about the frequency of consumption of these high effort meals with these so called "exotic" ingredients. You're jumping to conclusions about how often these folks have salmon and what not.



They can. Why are you posting here?

He's posting here to throw out insults a 12-year old would find embarrassing.

Also, you have some extra expenses in there that I've learned to cut down on. Bread is water, yeast, salt and flour. Cost per portion is negligable, and it's the easiest thing in the world to make. Plush, fresh baked bread is heaven. Eggs from a farmer, or farmers market are usually much, much cheaper than $2.50 a dozen. Hell, local grocers usually have a dozen for around a dollar.

You're assuming that they're eating your hypothetical $0.63/meal breakfast with absolutely no supporting evidence from the article.

Fresh produce, raw honey, and gourmet ice cream from a notoriously expensive healthfood store does not sound like pinching pennies to me.

Once again, fresh produce and "raw" honey (as opposed to cooked?) are not luxury items. Frozen fruit is usually far more expensive per portion. Considering the article is clearly biased in its writing style, I'd also have to question the "gourmet" ice cream. What the hell is that? Ben and Jerry's? Godiva chocolate? Any ice cream at all?

You want to assume the worst, and you're getting angrier and angrier the more people tell you you're incorrect in your assumptions. I'm beginning to wonder if you're just trolling the thread at this point.

 

[SnakeXs]

The only people I see arguing against food stamps are people who never has been in a situation where they ever needed them. People need to eat. What's so wrong with that?

The inherit reliance and abuse that comes with it. Not picking a side here at all, just playing devil's advocate.

 

[slit]

The only people I see arguing against food stamps are people who never has been in a situation where they ever needed them. People need to eat. What's so wrong with that?

The problem is they're not eating eating dog food. Which is what those who have never been in that situation expect.

 

[levious]

It's always fun to watch ignorance explode into full-out stupid. :lol

EDIT: I feed myself and my wife on a budget. If you give a crap about yourself and your health, you might actually want to look into learning how to make that sort of thing happen, too.

it's a common misconception, and I've always thought it stems from people occasionally cooking a full meal, and thinking "hey, this was great but I spent $40 in groceries for it," not realizing that they used like a fifth of the ingredients purchased for that one meal. As in, they didn't use the full bag of flour, entire carton of milk, etc.

The inherit reliance and abuse that comes with it. Not picking a side here at all, just playing devil's advocate.

Of all the mismanagement of govt funds and abuse of, I've always wondered why we pick on the poor more than other groups. People rarely get up in arms like this when government acquisition abuses are exposed... I would think we would hold govt officials/employees to a higher ethical standard than a random poor person.

 

[WanderingWind]

it's a common misconception, and I've always thought it stems from people occasionally cooking a full meal, and thinking "hey, this was great but I spent $40 in groceries for it," not realizing that they used like a fifth of the ingredients purchased for that one meal. As in, they didn't use the full bag of flour, entire carton of milk, etc.

Probably true. Also, when people are not familiar with the ingredients or cooking techniques, there ends up being a lot of waste.

 

[Tokubetsu]

All about that government cheese!

 

[CharlieDigital]

You're assuming that they're eating your hypothetical $0.63/meal breakfast with absolutely no supporting evidence from the article.

Well, the point was more along the lines of highlighting the fishy math you have going on there. Breakfast will almost always be the cheapest meal of the day for an average person. Your result of $1.66/meal has no real world meaning; you need context to make sense of the dollars.

Fresh produce, raw honey, and gourmet ice cream from a notoriously expensive healthfood store does not sound like pinching pennies to me.

Again, frequency. Honey is an example of an ingredient that can go a long way since you're not likely to use large quantities of it at any given time. Additionally, produce simply isn't as expensive as you think it is. I can get a bunch of spinach for $.99 at the local grocer (see the reviews here for yourself: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/451333)

We shop here regularly. I don't know the Freehold market, so I can't compare. This is a hispanic-run greengrocer with great prices and terrific selection, and yes, there is a full deli plus an interesting assortment of European as well as Latin American grocery items. The produce is usually top-quality.

I'm a regular customer there. I agree that it definitely isn't a "farm market", but rather a produce market. The prices on most items are very low compared to grocery stores. White peaches were 99 cents/# there and $2.99 elsewhere!

(This is the market by my house)

 

[Tenks]

ITT: People who can't cook get angry that poor people know how to cook, make better and tastier meals for cheaper

 

[Johnlenham]

Saw a few people saying places have turned them away for being overqualified, couldn't you just miss out that bit of your education to blag the job? I mean if people lie to improve their CV's cant see why you couldn't downgrade it just for that job.

 

[nyong]

I seem to have stirred up the hornet's nest.

WanderingWind, etc: Nobody is arguing that you cannot eat good foods without exploding your budget. I know what eggs cost; I know where to buy cheap whole wheat bread; I buy Quinoa (exotic) grains bulk; I drink milk and eat meat; I buy fresh fruits and vegetables. I'm not the greatest cook in the world, but I'm well aware of what I save cooking my own meals as opposed to eating out. This is common sense stuff.

What I do not agree with is your interpretation of the article. Some of you conclude that their food budget begins and ends with $150 worth of food stamps. Nowhere in the article is this said or even suggested, and in fact the evidence points elsewhere.

 

[AlternativeUlster]

The inherit reliance and abuse that comes with it. Not picking a side here at all, just playing devil's advocate.

I don't see what these guys are doing as abuse though. That story about the coffee is abuse unless those woman are on complete coffee diets which is just completely strange. What's wrong with relying on food stamps though? If people eat healthier or want to, they can use food stamps to add on to their income for better eating. If people just want to eat all that they can off food stamps, do what I do and get giant jars of peanut butter and a bag of potatoes and eat that for the entire month. It might be sad that some people get food stamps, use it to buy food, and then all excess pay use it to booze or buy drugs that are people who will abuse any system if they can.

Truth be told, when I couldn't get food stamps in Texas, I just stole food from grocery stores which in the end just helps myself. People who can't eat will steal to survive and that doesn't help the economy at all.

 

[FleckSplat]

What, are they supposed to buy cyborg salmon?

 

[Deleted member 22576]

Some of you conclude that their food budget begins and ends with $150 worth of food stamps. Nowhere in the article is this said or even suggested, and in fact the evidence points elsewhere.

I don't think many people assumed that.
It's fairly obvious they have additional money, I think the article even says that much.

 

[slit]

Saw a few people saying places have turned them away for being overqualified, couldn't you just miss out that bit of your education to blag the job? I mean if people lie to improve their CV's cant see why you couldn't downgrade it just for that job.

How would you do that though without creating huge employment gaps in your resume. If you are highly educated your last job title would probably reflect that and if you don't include your highly skilled jobs on you application then there going to be gaping holes in your employment history which sends a red flag to the employer.

 

[WanderingWind]

I seemed to have stirred up the hornet's nest.

WanderingWind, etc: Nobody is arguing that you cannot eat good foods without exploding your budget. I know what eggs cost; I know where to buy cheap whole wheat bread; I buy Quinoa (exotic) grains bulk; I drink milk and eat meat; I buy fresh fruits and vegetables. I'm not the greatest cook in the world, but I'm well aware of what I save cooking my own meals as opposed to eating out. This is common sense stuff.

What I do not agree with is your interpretation of the article. Some of you conclude that their food budget begins and ends with $150 worth of food stamps. Nowhere in the article is this said or even suggested, and in fact the evidence points elsewhere.

That's fine. You're completely entitled to your opinion. You're not entitled, however, to ignore facts, basic math, or to act like a child when faced with evidence contrary to your opinion. Throwing out tired insults also does not help your case whatsoever.

 

[grumble]

I don't see what these guys are doing as abuse though. That story about the coffee is abuse unless those woman are on complete coffee diets which is just completely strange. What's wrong with relying on food stamps though? If people eat healthier or want to, they can use food stamps to add on to their income for better eating. If people just want to eat all that they can off food stamps, do what I do and get giant jars of peanut butter and a bag of potatoes and eat that for the entire month. It might be sad that some people get food stamps, use it to buy food, and then all excess pay use it to booze or buy drugs that are people who will abuse any system if they can.

Truth be told, when I couldn't get food stamps in Texas, I just stole food from grocery stores which in the end just helps myself. People who can't eat will steal to survive and that doesn't help the economy at all.

No one has an issue with people eating healthy food, they have an issue with people subsidizing a very expensive eating habit with taxpayer dollars, when they could get equivalent nutrition from a less expensive eating habit and save the state money. It's strongly implied that the individuals mentioned in the article are not pinching pennies, though I do realize it's possible to eat quality food on the cheap. Organic food for example is almost without exception more expensive than non-organic food for an equivalent budget, despite offering no nutritional advantages. Again, possible that they are eating cheaply, but the information we have so far leans the other way.

This isn't the only evidence of waste or the largest, but it IS evidence of waste. If someone was collecting welfare and buying flatscreen TVs and sweet furniture, the situation would be similar.

Sometimes I think people will defend ANYTHING here.

 

[nyong]

I don't think many people assumed that.
It's fairly obvious they have additional money, I think the article even says that much.

This is how the argument began:

On one hand, I can't even afford to eat like that.

You don't have $150/mo to spend on fresh foods?

I don't get your statement. If you have $150, you can afford to eat like that. Whether you do or don't is more a matter of your own initiative to find good produce at good prices and use your culinary skills to prepare meals.

Are you saying your food budget is < $150/mo?

 

[levious]

Saw a few people saying places have turned them away for being overqualified, couldn't you just miss out that bit of your education to blag the job? I mean if people lie to improve their CV's cant see why you couldn't downgrade it just for that job.

lying on your resume can often help, but most people are not willing. But I've seen a number of articles relating to the recession mentioning people resorting to doing what you suggest. It's unfortunate.

 

[Vague]

Doesn't sound unreasonable to me.

My fiance and I pay $500.00 in January and June for fresh picked organic produce (10-30 pounds each week depending on harvest and weather) through a local farmer CSA. They pick it every Tuesday morning and we pick it up every Tuesday evening. That works out to be about $80 a month. We also get two dozen farm fresh eggs with each Tuesday delivery.

Half a slaughtered pastured steer once a year costs around $1000 for roughly 500 pounds of beef and a berkshire hog, about the same price for 400 pounds of pork, all various cuts. That works out to about $160 dollars a month, less if it lasts us longer than a year to eat it all (and it probably will)

So $240 a month for us to eat grass fed steaks, 2 inch thick pork chops, orange yolk eggs and organic fresh from the ground produce in a rural town in the south east. ~$2.60 a meal.

We go to the store maybe once a month at most and grow all our own herbs and spices. I bet we spend way less than most people spend eating shitty bread, waffles, pasta, soda and "government cheese". Go hipsters for being in tune with quality food actually being cheaper than the garbage most people eat.

 

[AlternativeUlster]

How would you do that though without creating huge employment gaps in your resume. If you are highly educated you last job title would probably reflect that and if you don't include your highly skilled jobs on you application then there going to be gaping holes in your employment history which sends a red flag to the employer.

Aren't resumes supposed to be suited towards the job you are applying for though? Like I am not going to write on my resume that I worked at a Chinese restaurant for a couple of months when I am applying to be an editor at a local TV station.

 

[Deleted member 22576]

Oh!

Well, I think you could probably eat like that for $300 a month.
Which, while twice as much money is still pretty damn cheap.

 

[CharlieDigital]

Next time I hit the farmer's market here, I'm going to post pics of my stash along with my receipt.

 

[Snowman Prophet of Doom]

No one has an issue with people eating healthy food, they have an issue with people subsidizing a very expensive eating habit with taxpayer dollars, when they could get equivalent nutrition from a less expensive eating habit and save the state money.

Again, this isn't the only evidence of waste or the largest, but it IS evidence of waste. If someone was collecting welfare and buying flatscreen TVs and expensive furniture, the situation would be similar.

Again, though, I fail to see the issue. Their food budget for the month is $150 whatever they are buying. In fact, it seems that they are stretching their budget in such a way as to make the money work for them in helping them to eat foods that they want to eat. Your analogy is not at all comparable.

 

[BigGreenMat]

I wish I could get food stamps. My food bill's are CRAZY. How are these single hipsters getting $200 per month for food!?!?

 

[evil solrac v3.0]

You're assuming that they're eating your hypothetical $0.63/meal breakfast with absolutely no supporting evidence from the article.



Fresh produce, raw honey, and gourmet ice cream from a notoriously expensive healthfood store does not sound like pinching pennies to me.

but $150 just might be enough for her/him. i mean, we also don't know from the article if theya re also using some of their own money to supplement as well.