Researchers say over $2 b a yr in food stamps spent on sugary drinks.

[powderman]

    Researchers fault food stamp program for subsidizing $2B a year in sugary drinks  Published September 20, 2012
FoxNews.com     

•   Getty

  The federal government’s major food-assistance program pays out as much as $2.1 billion annually for the purchases of sugar-sweetened drinks, according to a new study.
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, more commonly known as food stamps, overall pays out roughly $80 billion annually to roughly 46 million poor and low-income Americans, according to the federal government.
The study conducted by Yale University researchers and published Monday by the American Journal of Preventive Medicine also points out that the findings were made at the same time the federal government’s Dietary Guidelines for Americans is recommending Americans cut back on sugary drinks.
 
The eight-page study also stated the upcoming reauthorization for the Agriculture Department-administered program might be a good time to “reconsider the program priorities” -- specifically trying to better ensure the taxpayer money goes to more nutritional diets.
The money for the program is provided through the federal Farm Bill, which is set to expire by the end of the month. The Senate has passed its version, but the Republican-controlled House wants to cut roughly 2 percent in food stamp spending, which has roughly doubled in cost under the Obama administration.
 
The Agriculture Department could not be reached for comment Wednesday afternoon.
The researchers used scanner data from a New England supermarket chain to see what kind of refreshment beverages roughly 39,000 households chose in the first six months of last year. Some of the families also had been part of the federal food-assistance program known as Women, Infants and Children, or WIC.
 
Sugar-sweetened beverages accounted for 58 percent of the refreshment beverages purchases made by SNAP families and 48 percent by those only on WIC. Soda was the most frequently purchased drink by both groups, followed by bottled water, fruit-based beverages, then sports drinks. SNAP paid out $1.7 billion to $2.1 billion a year for sugar-sweetened drinks bought at the grocery stores, according to the study.
 
“Allowing annual use of multi-billions of SNAP benefits to purchase products that are at the core of public health concerns about obesity and chronic illnesses appears misaligned with the goals of helping low-income families live active, healthy lives,” the researches also concluded.
They also suggested that numbers could have higher considering the socio-demographic conditions in New England are somewhat better than those nationwide.
At least one public health expert thinks putting more restrictions on the SNAP program might be a bad idea.
 
Barbara Laraia of the University of California Berkeley’s School of Public Health, points out the argument that more restrictions might send a “paternalistic message that it is OK to restrict what poor Americans purchase with federal dollars, presumably because they do not know any better.”

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/09/20/researchers-fault-food-stamp-program-for-subsidizing-2b-year-in-sugary-drinks/#ixzz2712jRIZ6

[DDZ]

This is the kind of thing that happens when government gets involved under the disguise of helping people.

[Conan The Librarian]

Here's how it really works: food stamps are used to buy foods, most of it luxury food like frozen pizza instead of beans and rice. A lot of the stamps are traded for cash so that booze and drugs can be bought. The two billion is nothing compared to these other things.

[DDZ]

Here's how it really works: food stamps are used to buy foods, most of it luxury food like frozen pizza instead of beans and rice. A lot of the stamps are traded for cash so that booze and drugs can be bought. The two billion is nothing compared to these other things.

Actually they get an access card to use for food, with allotted amount put on the card each month. What people do is sell their card then report that they lost it. Then they are given another card. It once was an endless amount of times one could report their card lost or stolen, and still get another card. That is until some of our brainless bureaucrats caught on to the fraud. Now someone can only sell or lose their card three times. That will sure fix-um.
Everything government has their hands in, there is fraud or waste. There isn't a dang one of them that tries to fix anything or reduce spending. The only thing they do well is spend, spend spend, as if there is no end to the money.

When you see a shopping cart loaded with soda, cakes, and cookies. Its a pretty good guess they are paying for this crap through the SNAP program. Isn't it great government is helping these people out. Welfare is the biggest vote buyer there is. Its why all of them (our elected) are in on the game. Yes republicans too.   

[powderman]

I know of some who will loan their card with X # of $s on it for 1/2 price in cash. They get their card back and buy their dope with the cash.
Some folks need the help And I'm all for it, but many abuse it too. I've seen folks with 12-14 12 pks of cokes and pay with food stamps, more than once. POWDERMAN. 

[Ranger99]

it took me a while to figure this out-
next time you're in a small grocery or
convenience store, look to see if there's
a can of beans or soup or something sitting
right by the register.
the clerk scans x number of cans, customer
gets a pack of smokes and 3 or 4 dollars
back and the food stamp program has been
charged for food that was never bought.

[finisher]

it took me a while to figure this out-
next time you're in a small grocery or
convenience store, look to see if there's
a can of beans or soup or something sitting
right by the register.
the clerk scans x number of cans, customer
gets a pack of smokes and 3 or 4 dollars
back and the food stamp program has been
charged for food that was never bought.

*****************
This depends on the state. Some states do regular audits on the sale of smokes and the merchants have to keep track of those receipts. This will usually only occur with an independent outfit unfortunately.

[Ranger99]

i've been there when it happened.
bad thing is, you can't get the police
to come out unless someone is half dead.
they didn't want to come out when my home
was burglarized a while back.
" nothing we can really do "  they say

[powderman]

RANGER. No doubt it happens but it would make their inventory way off on whatever they scanned, smokes too. POWDERMAN.