The more reading and research I do the more I get excited about our My Earth Garden October Food Challenge. The numbers out there are not looking good at all which just tells me that there is no better time than now to bring the issue of food insecurity to the forefront of our minds. The USDA estimates that the cost of food is going to increase by 3-4% in 2011 and that’s a problem that doesn’t seem to be alarming the public as much as it should.
The Government Says We’re Gonna Starve
According to this chart, the average cost of food at home for males between the ages of 19 & 50 in 2011 ranges between $176 (Thrifty plan) and $347.70 (Liberal plan). The same chart says that the monthly cost of a Thrifty meal plan for a household of two adults in the same age range would be $366. Unfortunately John & I have chosen to live on the amount of the average SNAP / Food Stamps an Alabama resident would receive, so we will be creating the “Really Really Thrifty plan” while living on just $126.90 each for the month of October. That’s $4 per person, per day, or $112.20 less than what the data suggests that we should have for the lowest cost meal plan.
I’m a lifelong gardener, so I know how to grow my own food. John & I live on rural land, so we have the room to grow our own food. To fully embrace this challenge we are putting that all aside and striving to eat the best diet we can on the amount of money we are allowed. As one friend pointed out, the real challenge is not eating on that amount of money, it is eating a reasonably nutritious diet on such a restricted budget.
To make this work we are going to have to be creative and we’re going to have to be prepared to compromise on some of the things we enjoy and take for granted. We will have to embrace portion control (not our strong suit, I assure you) as a way to keep costs in check and to accurately account for the price of any given meal.
I don’t foresee going without food at any point but I’m willing to do so for the sake of this challenge if I have to. It is even possible that we may have to purchase so-called convenience and prepackaged foods to make our budget limits work and though I do not and will not recommend it, it will be worth it for the illustrative value of this challenge.
The Light At the End of the Tunnel Is an Oncoming Train
Whatever the outcome of the October Challenge, the point is for it to be as true-to-life as possible- an accurate depiction of the struggle to feed yourself on low income. When the month is over and we can look back on what happened, we will also be in a better position to illustrate the value of growing and preserving your own food, and that will be the subject of a future challenge project.
TELL US!
What do you think is a reasonable amount of money for a monthly food budget? Do you have any experiences to share? Leave a comment below.
{ 13 comments… read them below or add one }
Food Stamps are meant to supplement the family’s food budget not replace it.
In the month of April 2010 alone Contra Costa County Ca. Had 8000. brand new applications for food stamps.
I’m aware of that. Thanks for the info on Contra Costa County.
I look forward to your October Challenge and any tips and advice you can provide to the rest of us. It’s a challenge for sure, as our budget for groceries is nothing like it used to be….I hate to say it but some of the ‘convenience’ (read as less-healthy) food comes into play more often than I would like.
I was recently given a figure from an employee where I work about the total in SNAP assistance he, his live-in girlfriend and their child receive every month. He stated it was over $600, (this information was not solicited) and that he also receives subsidised housing, and welfare funds to live on. It makes me reflect back to working at McDonalds when I asked an employee to work an extra day for me to cover a short shift, the response alarmed me…”I ain’t working no extra. I make $40 extra and that messes with my section 8 (susidised housing), my stamps (now known as SNAP) and my government check. It just ain’t worth it.” I think subsidy should be limited in time, and extended for those that have honestly tried to improve.
I used to be on food stamps. I was forced to after watching my children eat one night (cheap ramen noodles) and being afraid the food was going to run out before they were full. I buried my shame and embarrassment and applied that week. I realize they are supposed to supplement the food budget, but the truth is, minimum wage hardly covers rent and utilites in a poor part of town, and food stamps are all that is left to feed the family with. As wages go down, what jobs there are pay less, and more are part-time and temporary, more people are turning to the food pantries and food stamps. I realize there are some bad apples in the barrel. Tell me what large group of any kind doesn’t have them. Please stop judging the majority by the minority. Until you’ve been in those shoes, you don’t understand how painfully they fit. As for the man who wouldn’t work any extra hours, the truth is the system punishes you for trying to get ahead a little. I used to try to make a few extra dollars making handcraft items for local crafts fairs. I needed the money to buy my kids shoes and pants; theirs were full of holes. One son was coming home in the winter with his socks soaking wet because of it. If I made so much as $20 profit, I lost $40 in stamps. Try feeding, clothing, and keeping the heat on for your family in those circumstances. I was fortunate to get out of poverty after a long while, as this was in the 90s. Unfortunately, I will never catch up to “regular” people, and I am slowly sliding back into poverty. This is the truth of our country today. Stop judging and condemning, and start extending a hand to help others get ahead. This is not the same as enabling. Things are going to get a lot worse in this country before they get better. Blaming those who are already hurting is simply a convenient way of avoiding the truth and self-contemplation. Why the need to assume everyone in life came into it on a level playing field as you, and therefore should have been able to do as well as you? Once you start helping those in need, you realize most are hard-working, ethical, and moral people. Michael, I applaud your efforts. Don’t ever give up. Sorry this is so long, but I see lots of negative comments about food stamp/welfare recipients, and while I completely agree they should only be a bridge to self-sufficiency, far too many people I know keep getting knocked down no matter how hard they try. And yet they keep a strong and caring outlook on life and others. These are the people I will choose over the successful and prideful any day.
Thank you for your touching story. I really look forward to the dialogue that the month of October is going to open here on MEG and I am happy that you are a part of it. Your point about minimum wage is one that John & I have talked about very seriously with regard to this challenge, and it is something that will be discussed in depth next month.
I am very interested in your project because I’m also in Alabama and using food stamps. Unfortunately, I’m feeding 2 adults with $200 a month and there’s a challenge for you. There is no other money in the budget for food and I can’t print coupons as I have no printer. It’s not feasible to do it at the library either. Good luck!
Thanks for sharing your situation. We chose the amount based on the data we were able to find. I can appreciate what you’re going through as both John & myself have dealt with severe food budget shortfalls in our lives. I hope that you are able to gather some useful information during the challenge and that you will share any insights you might have along the way.
My BF and I have a Weekly grocery budget of $90 for the two of us. We have done pretty well on that amount. We aren’t eating organic, but we aren’t eating a bunch of processed crap either. On that budget we not only buy all of the groceries that we need for that particular week, we often have a little extra ($10-20) to put toward buying extra things on sale to put aside for later.
I am just catching up on this challenge and plan to follow it to the end in an effort to help my Mom (she’s on limited income and has a gov’t mortgage that keeps raising her house payment every year even though she has not had an increase in income in 3 years) and to get some ideas for myself (my household just doubled from 2 to 4 adults when my son and his girlfriend moved in). I had a small garden (about 6×12) this year, but did not get a lot out of it. I hope to do better next year. I have some spinach in pots in a portable greenhouse that I hope to get enough for a few salads from. I live in southwest Ohio and although we haven’t had frost yet, it’s not far away. Winter is my favorite season, except for the garden! I read somewhere recently that microgreens can be grown on top of the refrigerator in plastic containers such as strawberries and salad greens come in, but I haven’t tried it yet.
Michael, I wish you the best of luck with this challenge and look forward to learning from it. Thanks!!!
In response to the comment by Name Withheld ~ A person in the situation you described stands to lose eligibility for subsidized programs if they make slightly over the allowable amount even ONCE. They are faced with moving out of their subsidized housing, lose access to food stamps etc even though the next month and all months following they may be in the same financial boat that made all those things necessary. To re-establish the programs they would have to reapply and be put at the end of the waiting list. Now, if you had extra shifts available every month to make up the difference in wages I could see your complaint being valid. However, the occasional and completely non-guaranteed extra shift that pays $40 before taxes but disrupts a persons living situation, budget etc is actually not worth it. At all.
Food is getting more expensive everyday, and it’s very hard to buy things needed. If people using food stamps or not, would make more things on their own instead of using canned goods it really helps and saves money. I only get $72.00 in food stamps. I have always made things from scratch it’s cheaper money wise and tastes better and is healthier as well. I boil chicken fat and the skin to make the broth. make my own egg noodles, dumplings, ravioli’s. I buy most of the things I need at the Dollar Tree, where everything is a dollar or two for a dollar including eggs. Meats, milk, , vegetables, flour, coffee I buy at the Grocery Store, BUT, I always watch for BOGO’s ( buy one get one). I make potato soup, chickennoodle, beef noodle, chicken and beef stews as well homemade better and cheaper than bought. When things are on sale like milk I buy two, put one in the freezer, same with lunch meats, cheese, butter, breads. If you find eggs on sale you can always crack them, put them in individual bags or containers and freeze them. When you need them take them out let them thaw they are just like fresh. As I live in a high rise and no where to grow anything, I make a lot of home made dinners and freeze them for later use. I admit it’s hard living on low income and trying to make ends meet. Plus I only get a little over $700. a month disability to pay rent, bills, medicine, life insurance, a few extras like clothing from thrift stores., dish liquids, bath room essentials, shampoo, cream rinse, tooth paste, mouth wash, washing detergents,bleaches, fabric softeners, for doing laundry, air fresheners, floor care products, all of these things are bought from the Dollar Store, unless the grocery store has it cheaper, plus enough change to wash and dry the clothes, bus passes. You have to check all sales adds for stores, I make trips to the different stores for the bargains, I have to take a bus there and transfer carrying some and some in the little cart I have. But I get out in the fresh air, walk around which is good for the heart.
Oh one other thing I wanted to add, going to food pantry’s here in Greensboro,NC
(GUM) Greensboro Urban Ministries, if you don’t have a vehicle or someone to take you or can’t afford a taxi. You cannot get anything. They will not allow you to carry it, or take a bus.