Newsbrief: SNAP Challenge

I have been participating in the SNAP Challenge this week.

And I’ve gotta tell you, it is hard.

SNAP stands for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and it is more commonly known as “food stamps.”

The SNAP Challenge is a consciousness raising exercise, where for one whole week you have to live on the same food budget as those who receive SNAP Food Benefits. Which is to say, you are limited to a grand total of $29.43 per person to spend on food and beverages during the Challenge week. That translates to $4.20 per day, or $1.40 per meal if you avoid any snacks or extras (and you pretty much have to).

Like I said, it has been hard. It has also been eye opening.

The food I purchased for
the entire week of the SNAP Challenge.

I am fortunate that I have never had to worry about food. So it was a strange feeling to walk through the grocery store on Saturday evening buying my supplies for the week. For the first time in my life I was afraid I would not have enough food to eat.

In fact, shopping that evening was a startling experience. For one, it took me over an hour and a half to buy three small bags worth of groceries. It took so long because I had to walk up and down aisles pricing out different items before I could actually put anything in my grocery cart. I had to calculate “Do I have enough for fresh fruit and produce?” (yes, but not very much of them), “Can I afford a can of pinto beans or some yogurt to supplement my protein?” (no, I could not) and “How many meals can I get from a box of pasta?” (three, it turns out).

I also ended up having to purchase all sorts of items that I normally wouldn’t have bought simply because they were the least expensive items available. One of the reasons I am a vegetarian is because it forces me to be conscious of the food I eat and the things I put into my body. In general I try to avoid overly processed foods, particularly things with the dreaded “high-fructose corn syrup” in it. But not this week. Everything from a generic loaf of bread (marked down to $1), pasta sauce ($1.37), box of mac-n-cheese (69-cents), can of soup ($1.25), and even a can of peas (discounted to 59-cents) had high-fructose corn syrup added to it! Not only was I eating less food because of $29.43 limit (and I am, a lot less) but the food is significantly less nutritious as well.

My receipt. I intentionally left myself $3.50 for the week,
just in case I ran out of food and needed to
go back to the store for emergency supplies.

Oh, and many of our church members who are participating in the SNAP Challenge have jokingly mentioned to me that they are vegetarians this week…because they couldn’t afford to purchase any meat.

It is amazing to think of food as a luxury item. When I realized late last night that I had enough food to get me through the week I was honestly ecstatic. Now that will require making a third meal out of that box of pasta that I mixed with a jar tomato sauce and it will require me to continue eating some semblance of an egg sandwich every day, and hoping that the little bit of cantaloupe I have left doesn’t rot. I’m going to make it through this week, but I can’t imagine having to live this way. We have brothers and sisters who are hungry, who are hurting, and who aren’t living on $29.43 as a consciousness raising exercise…but rather because that is all they have.

Time and time again in the scriptures Christ Jesus asks us what we are doing for the hungry and the poor and as I’m finishing up the SNAP Challenge I am more convinced than ever that the answer is: Not enough.

Yours in the Journey,

Rev. Brian