Perhaps you stumbled by this blog because you have signed up for foodstamps/EBT/Snap and are wondering if you can, in fact, by a bakery made cake with your plastic EBT card. On Sunday I was at the Walmart in Long Beach and the people in front of me had a cake that was $45, according to the cashier. They pulled out their EBT card which features a photograph of the California coastline and paid for the $45 cake with their foodstamp/EBT/Snap card. You might be saying:
‘Yay! Now I can purchase a $45 dollar cake!‘
or you might be saying:
‘Why the heck is my tax money that is taken from me going to pay for a $45 dollar cake made and decorated by a professional baker and not to the BASIC groups of food used to sustain life?‘
Either way, this illustrates the problems with socialist programs in America in the year 2011. They have gone too far. The last big parties that I have had included made from scratch and my own cake decorating skills. This is not because I would not have liked to have purchased a fancy cake with Spiderman rings and Batman decorations for my children. It was only that I could not AFFORD such things. If a taxpayer can not afford it then why is it that EBT/ Foodstamp/SNAP takers are able to gain the system in such a way. The cake they were able to get was not about food–the money was going to pay for the creative artworking of the baker. This is not what food stamps should be about. Does Michelle Obama know about this? Maybe this has more to do with obese children than fastfood or school lunches–foodstamp parents buying huge ass fancy birthday cakes with their EBT cards.
At any rate, this is something that has got to stop. I hope Darrel Issa or Mike Pence or anybody out there will get rid of this program and reform it so that it mirrors WIC. Buying a $45 cake is as bad as the people using their EBT cash aid to purchase cigarettes and alcohol–but wait, none of that is put to a stop either. Once you dole out the money, they can spend it on whatever luxury item they want without thinking twice about it. In the meantime, you taxpayers out their are stuck with paying their frivolous bills.
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I see this EVERY day at Publix in Naples, Florida. People will come in and literally order $200 wedding cakes and $80 Dora the Explorer cakes with Foodstamps. I am NOT exaggerating. I see this EVERY Saturday and Sunday. I work full time and have no children, pay my way for everything and would not be able to afford that. It’s disgusting.
More than likely they know how to shop and why not if they have the resources. Don’t hate, thats why you don’t have what is most precious. BE HAPPY and learn to love!
If you’re so disgusted why don’t you quit your job and apply for food stamps? I guaranteed that you can’t live off of food stamps or government money. Hell, the cost of living is so high you wouldn’t make it one day on your own. You’d have to live with your parents. It’s not the person that’s the problem for buying there child a birthday gift or themselves a birthday cake on food stamps. Having a disability isn’t something people want or being homeless. So what if you have a job without God you wouldn’t have anything. You’d be dead just like Whitney Houston and Michael Jackson. Food stamps can’t feed a homeless family on the street. They can only afford chips and soda at the dollar store even though there diabetic. Before any of you criticize someone on how they use there food stamps learn there story. It’s the government’s fault and it’s sorry congressmen. So I say if you’re hungry ain’t nothing wrong with food stamps. People who have jobs die quicker anyway from stress and burnout. That’s why Heart Attacks and Strokes are such a high cause to death and Cancer. If you work too much that’s your problem at least you found a job. There are college students who can’t even find a job so just shut up, stop complaining and go to work!!!
Look you peoples that’s complain white peoples have just as many kids as black peoples do stop complain trust me if your ass could even make a baby you problaly have nine or twenty kids on foodsramps to stop complain hater
I have also seen this but, you have to remember that’s all the kid or kids got that year. When my husband died I had to go on support to keep my child alive and nourished aswell as myself for a short period of time, and sometimes that was the only thing we had at all. SNAP was designed to not just help low income families but to give certain disadvantaged people a new outlook on life, a full belly which MOST have NOT had for months before they find out if they are denied or accepted, the process to apply was agonizing bec most of us do not have internet, TV, cable, or a computer for that matter so it’s not like these families have it easy. Most recepients of the program are very lucky and thankful for the food. It is only a rare few that buy junk and try to stay on it out of being fat and lazy, everyone else has experienced death of parents, siblings, child or spouse and/or major accidents, illness or situations in which Food Stamps were there only hope and trust me feeding a family on less than 30/wk isn’t fun, it’s a daily struggle and most do not have more than 2 meals perday, the cake was prbly the only thing they’ve enjoyed all year so I’d give them a break until you know how many funerals they had endured prior.
The most expensive Dora The Explorer Cake is right about $30. Also if this person buys everything else cheap to stretch their food budget to be able to afford the cake. I don’t see the problem. It’s not like they are eating cake daily… also many of these people don’t have the resources to make a cake. That takes pans, and an oven. I have met a single mother who had a JOB as a waitress, and she was in college, (you still qualify for food-stamps if you work and don’t make much!) who cared for her two year old daughter. They lived in a motel room and she paid weekly with what little money she had. There was no oven. She purchased her daughter’s Birthday cake from Publix Bakery with her ebt. It was something the little girl had to look forward to. I know it’s hard for some people to see on the other side. But try to realize these people… are human beings, and sometimes they don’t have much happiness, or pleasure to look forward to.
I see nothing wrong with buying a simple premade bakery cake from what ever grocery store you shop at. That is the only way some parents can buy the cake for their children. No I do not think that you should be able to buy a wedding cake or even an extravagant birthday cake for that matter. Why should the children suffer and not be able to have a “cool” cake like the rest of his friends that are coming to the party?
Just my opinion
I agree with your statement. Although I could purchase a pre made cake with my EBT card, I chose to make my own. But, you are right, this is the only way some folks can afford a birthday cake. As far as being able to purchase “luxury items” ie’ alcohol and cigarettes – Food stamps do not pay for those. As far as the other comments: key word WORKING. Anyone lucky enough to be employed should thank their lucky stars. Some of us have been laid off and finding a job right now is extremely difficult, I have been looking for 6 months. I have had no choice but to use EBT and although I know there are some who abuse the privlage, I do not. In fact applying for the service was one of the most eye-opening experiences of my life. Even if I could afford it, I would never purchase a cake for $45.00 THAT is disgusting!
i like ur opinion.i am a struggling parent just trying to survive and i too dont see anything wrong with a child once a yr get a birthday made cake.some people just hasnt been in others shoes to realize this.the people that say they will never get on welfare will end up on welfare,especially the way the unemployment rate goes up.ty for speaking out.
I totally agree once a year to make your child feel speciall like the other kids wont hurt anyone.
I disagree with you beverly. You haven’t been in my shoes. Yes, it’s bad to not give your kid a birthday cake. But that’s your problem– not the rest of the country. Ask your church, your school, or someone if they will donate it. But definitely don’t pay my money for it. If you have enough of my money to pay for a cake, it means you have too much of my money and have already purchased everything your kid needs. Remember… it’s not your money.
Interesting discussion. I know people who have ebt and use it for food items they need. The birthday cake thing, I think is okay if it’s already made at the bakery. To Jose in California, why do you think that it is not the ebt users money too? Everyone that I know on ebt also work full time jobs, so in essence, it is their money as well. The people I know are hard working citizens whose mediocre job is not meeting their needs, but they work and pay taxes like all the rest of us.
@JOSE IN CA… It’s funny how people say “the tax payers money”. Where do you think your “tax money” would go if they ended food stamps all together? Do you think you have to stop paying as much? Yea right! It would just somewhere else and then you would still be complaining! So get over it, life’s not fair and stop whining. When you retire and you only get a little amount of money to survive on, are YOU going to apply for food stamps? Or are you going to starve? Maybe one day someone that you know and/or care about will end up on them and you will realize things aren’t always what they seem.
i agree
i too agree, Im a single mom, and has always made my sons birthday cake. This year is a special treat bc he gets a store one. and its 15 $. Not like 80.
I also agree… I also would like to know why do people feel like Food stamps one person spends is coming out of their pay check.The taxes taking out of our paychecks go to a variety of things. Furthermore, how dare you judge someone with out even knowing their full story. Shame on you…
I completely agree. My son turns 6 on thursday. I am a hardworking single mom who does not get child support. My income is low enough that I still qualify for food stamps each month. If I choose to spend some of those funds on a special birthday cake, that is my business. I still get the same amount of food stamps each month, regardless of what I spend it on. If I can budget our food expenses to provide enough for a birthday cake, then so be it.
exactly ! make sure u treat your kids good because sometimes no matter what people think single moms needs those foodstamps and its up to you to do what you want. Tax payer or not you cant control what a person spends her foodstamps on. Get a life or help her get a job if your so worried about what she doing to keep her n her kids happy
I disagree. The whole point of food stamps is that you can’t afford basic necessities of your children. It’s not up to the taxpayer to buy this kid a birthday cake– premade, or any otherwise. The GENEROSITY of the taxpayer is being used to buy the staples of food so this child doesn’t die or go to bed hungry. Anything else is an ABUSE. What happens when the taxpaying worker who can’t afford a cake? Kid gets no cake. Sorry to be harsh, but having cake is not a right.
yeah jose because you are the only fucking taxpayer, get over it, I am sure most of these people have worked before therefore putting thier own foot towards taxpaying dollars, get over it …..
Are you serious moron people on county pay taxes too… lol
People are entitled to buy what they want with the help they get , if you cant afford a 45 dollar cake then maybe you should apply for foodstamps cause apparently the person who did spend that much is giving there child something that ANYMOTHER SHOULD TAX PAYER OR NOT .!
@JOSE IN CA… It’s funny how people say “the tax payers money”. Where do you think your “tax money” would go if they ended food stamps all together? Do you think you have to stop paying as much? Yea right! It would just somewhere else and then you would still be complaining! So get over it, life’s not fair and stop whining. When you retire and you only get a little amount of money to survive on, are YOU going to apply for food stamps? Or are you going to starve? Maybe one day someone that you know and/or care about will end up on them and you will realize things aren’t always what they seem.
Damn straight jose! Cake is NOT a necessity, feeding your child is. The purpose of food stamps is to help the needed RECOVER and to sustain them with food necessary to survive. Not buy them a cake as horrible as it sounds. Because those 45 dollars could go towards 4 whole days worth of food for the boy
Thank you! I’m a single mother w food stamps and I couldn’t afford to feed my 3 children w/o food stamps and it is only a few people who abuse it. I buy the same $20 cake and write the names myself and It is none of anybody’s business how I spend them or where! I’m very responsible w mine. If you qualify for them then yes your struggling to care for your family. And the people who have the nerve to post crap like this have no idea what our lives are like. And they should feel blessed to not need food stamps. God is our judge not them! And they will answer for their judgement of others. The snap program literally saves lives! And the cashier who put other peoples business’s out there is guilty too gossip is a sin just like judging others! Putting yourself in Gods place and judging others is a bigger sin than buying a $45 cake!
If someone wants to take their foodstamps and purchase a $45 cake or even a $200 cake, why should anyone be concerned. If bakers are so disgusted in their private bakeries then dont accept foodstamps. O wait then how will they get paid? If you never have had to be in the system, congrats, but dont be jealous or hateful to those that need too. Trust me, you dont know your future.
What next, those with foodstamps should not be able to buy lobster tails or shrimp because your budget doesnt allow you to? Be for real. O wait you were because of your tax dollars, right? First of all, tax funds are so spread out that you have no idea where your money is being used. You have kids, well, complain about the teachers who are getting paid even when none of their students pass the state exams. You have a car, well, complain about potholes because your insurance doesnt cover those damages. But dont complain about what goes on in someone elses household that has nothing to do with you. Especially when you have no idea of their struggle. That may have been that estimated cancer patient child last birthday, were they suppose to explain that to you? NO, because again its none of your business.
wow you made such a good statement and ur right.
I totally agree
I agree…I do have foodstamps…but here’s the thing. I’m a single working mother, working two jobs and that is just to keep the roof I have over my sons head. The only jobs in the town I live in is fast food. And with winter coming, my hours were reduced so bad last month I HAD to get a second job. It sucks not seeing my son some days, but I. Am trying to work to a point where I can hopefully quit one(probably not until next year though) his birthday is one of the only days I have off from both jobs. If my walmart will allow it, I will have to use my card to get his cake. Nothing too amazing, I just cannot bake one with no time on my hands. So right there, I am paying taxes just as much as some of you douches(I still claim 0 so I don’t have to end up paying what I don’t have come tax season) that are talking shit. So maybe you should think before you open your mouths.
Well said 🙂
Your the shit, put it plain and simple. We should all be greatful for what we got and not dwell on others happiness. May God be with all of you.
preach! hes a total dumb asss ! lmaoo
Very well said I agree….
We’ll said girl! I’ll buy whatever I want to with mine because it is none of anybody’s biz! I’m very responsible with mine and even if I wasn’t???? Our tax dollars also go to the EPA who sent children out to protest Easter eggs! Yeah YOUR tax dollars paid them to do that! They do t just function on donations 🙂 and plenty of us who have food stamps have had jobs and worked!
I stumbled upon this article while searching whether or not you can purchase birthday cakes w/ an EBT card. Shame on whoever posted this….!! I have an EBT card and I have plans on purchasing my boyfriend’s cake w/ it. Have you ever thought maybe these people didn’t have the cash on hand to buy the cake or maybe they had to use the cash to pay for something more important like bills!!! Damn maybe they don’t have the skills like you do to make and decorate cakes like you!! Those people just want their child to have a great birthday!! Yes I use to my card to buy more important items but if they allow purchases such as a birthday cake why not its not doing anyone any harm!! Next time PLEASE stay out of other folks business and how they pay for their items or what they use to pay with!!
I agree with everything Myra
I don’t know why anyone would be concerned about people buying a birthday cake with their foodstamps. Whether the cake cost $10 or $110 it just comes off of the balance of the foodstamps so it will just leave less money for other items…. regardless they are getting the same amount of foodstamp dollars no matter what they are being spent on. If we all spent as much time worrying about ourselves and our situations as we did worrying about what other people are doing in their lives, the world would be a much better more productive place!
way too many people take advantage of the ebt system while my husband and I work and all you ebt users suck 100-200$ out of our checks to go buy shit you don’t need..we work forty hour weeks and are barely scraping by while the ones collecting from the government sit at home on there ass and go to the park and buy new things..we work and can’t afford new things or trips to the beach why are you all able to live more comfortably then the people who work for what they have. It’s not about jealousy or unfairness its about the government and ebt offices enabling lazy asses that don’t want to work why would they if they get all these free benefits they get handed the monopoly money and go hog wild its a big huge screwed up joke and I hope you all enjoy your fast food and pizza that everyone else payed for while I sit down and eat a piece of bread and glass of water.
I’m just floored with the ignorance on this blog! How people just blindly make comments about people based on their use of ebt/snap. To say that all persons using it is lazy, drug users. Why can’t people on foodstamps be able to buy foods they like? What because some people need help should they buy day old moldy bread because they’re poor. Working class people get high, make poor decisions with money, write checks and hope their money comes in to cover that check they had no business writing. Not all those receiving aid are crooks! No one has the right to tell me or anyone who gets foodstamps what I should buy with it!!! Poor people eat poorly because food that is good for you is too expensive. If I want london broil and shrimp and asparagus and I have the aid to afford me to purchase it, I’m getting it,and any other foods I want. I’ve worked 23 years and paid taxes. So try minding your own business and hope that you never have to use foodstamps. Nothing in this world is secure. Today you could be working and making great money. Tomorrow You could be standing in line at the county. I’m not taking anything from you, or anyone else. I worked and made an honest living and paid into this government and I’m now unemployed. What little help I’m getting , I’m truly blessed! Yes there are people who take advantage of the system. There are people each and every year that cheat on their taxes or stretch the truth to give them time to pay their bills. People who live in glass houses, shouldn’t throw stones!
I am so glad someone has put this into perspective. I’m that guy that made great money one week, and was literally at unemployment the next. That was exactly a year ago this month, and I’ve found another job. Every month is still a struggle. Making almost a quarter of what I used to is a struggle. I can guarantee you an amount of money that anyone on foodstamps because they had no other options would trade it in a second to just “scrape by” every month, because the majority of us are barely even doing that. Be thankful you don’t have to sacrifice $45 of actual food/dinner money to make your child feel special. What parent wants their child to feel inferior to there friends, or doesn’t want to give them the absolute best that they deserve? And, more importantly, who are you to judge?
oh i so lv ur reply…….well said……no one can understand this if they dont have any children,i had worked like 12 yrs and now unemployed.i once told myself i would never go low and i did.i too use to be pissed for others using food stamps.
Thank God you have a husband some of us dont have that, you arent alone but some of us are. If you are wrong40 hours a week and eating bread and water something is FUCKED UP. Maybe you should have your husband to apply for the EBT then maybe you can stop eating bread and water.
Oh my lands… I dont think i have every seen such ignorance!! Mary-Kate… You can go jump, putting it politely. A. the government doesn’t take 100-200$ of your dollars every month and put it on some lazy bums ebt card and say “Here ya go.. Dont care whatcha do with it… Just buy whatever!!”” Haha no they def do not. Sometimes in life people lose their jobs. Sometimes in life someone who has a high school diploma, a college degree, and experience still cant find a job paying over $8 an hour. What is this person to do when they have 2 children at home to feed? Or what if there is just two of them, husband and wife? Just because neither one of them can find a job paying over $8 an hour they should sit at home and fucking starve is that right? Here is a newsflash for you… EBT buys FOOD… Nothing else.. Its not like the good ole days when us lazy asses could collect our food stamps and go to the gas station and cash them in.. The government outsmarted us.. DARN!! Ya know what.. what is truly sad.. Some people NEED food stamps. And that’s where the government is there to HELP.. Your taxes aren’t going directly to ebt users… No probably $1 out of the whole $200 that you pay in does, which by the way if your paying $200 a week to the government then you are doing better than me. I have an ebt card.. But I also pay my taxes on a bi-weekly basis.. Maybe instead of talking about how some unfortunate mom purchased her sons birthday cake with your 1% of your taxes you paid in. You should be talking about the upper class members of society who pay less taxes than me and make enough money to buy a house in one day. Yet its ok that they pay less taxes than you and I because they work for what they have. Sometimes think before you post Mary-Kate… Because your post just not only made you look like an idiot who knows nothing about the government but it also made you look like a total b**** …..
If you are eating a piece of bread and a glass of water for dinner and you and your husband both work 40 hour weeks, you need a money management class LMFAO. Sorry but you sound like a f*cking idiot! LMFAO. Seriously, who gave you and your idiot husband full time jobs knowing that you don’t have cars…which I’m sure you don’t because you eat a piece of bread and glass of water for dinner. Also, why not get an apartment instead of that house you have, since you eat a piece of bread and glass of water for dinner? What’s up with having internet and typing on that computer that you can’t afford, since you eat a piece of bread and glass of water for dinner.
B*tch, tha f*ck outta here LMFAO
it makes me absolutely SICK to my stomach how most people like YOU put people down and make them feel ASHAMED that they have foodstamps, NOBODY knows each others life’s. Who are you to say there going “to buy shit they dont need” Stay out of theres!! BTW welfare isnt all that great like YOUR making it seem im truly blessed that i have that help! I hope GOD changes you for the bettter.
If you and your husband both work 40 hour weeks and you are still ‘barely scraping by’ then maybe you need to pay more attention to your own budget instead of blaming everyone else for your problems. There are hundreds of thousands of hard working americans right now who are unemployed or working jobs that do not pay enough to cover the basic needs of their families. Many are single parents who struggle to do everything themselves, when you have your husband to help you. To group all food stamp users as ‘lazy asses’ just demonstrates to everyone who reads this blog that you are a small minded, cynical woman who needs to mind her own business.
If you’re working that’s your problem. If you’re so tired retire that’s what retirement is for old folks. Move out the way so somebody else can get your job. Hopefully that Single Mother who was raped by her uncle. Don’t think that people can live off of government money you can’t not in this inflation. Cost of living is so high ain’t no way. Also, for your information on food stamps you can’t afford pizza and all those delicious food. I have to shop at dollar tree to get groceries that don’t last a week. I can’t even afford the 45 dollar birthday cake everybody’s ranting about and my birthday is Thursday. I am schizophrenia so I don’t have to work. That is my disability, But you people die young from diseases for working hard for something you’ll never have in America, freedom and wealth. Welcome to the new slave country.
your dumb do your damn research before you post you work 40 hours a week and you barely making it, imagine a woman who is getting 500 dollars a months with two kids, how she living , while you dumb asses are so mad a person can go get some food to feed their family . you should consider finding a better job … and for all you tax payers you dont get 100-200 dollars tooken out of your check especially if you file taxes and get the money you guys are complianin about back .
this is all just really stupid i am 20 years old and i have a hustband and 2 small kids i am a very young mother that needs help and that dont hurt anything and my husband trys so hard as a c tech but it aint his fault that there is not business he dont get paid hourly he gets paid flag means if he done work on a car he gets no hours and no hours means no pay we try to make it through and life is hard so all u ppl out there downin ppl that use food stamps carma is a bitch really what goes around comes around one day this might be u cuz yall want to talk crap. ppl try u know and some times it works and some times it dont get over it and stop talkin shit.
Just got laid off recently, I all ready have a party all paid for at this party place in Phx… I have NO CLUE how to make a cake. I will indeed be getting my daughter’s special BITHDAY cake with my EBT card. About 30 people are coming, & this party WILL be enjoyed, & DELICIOUS!!! 🙂
There is no reason why you have to be jobless and cakeless with an EBT card. With that said please enjoy a slice of your babygirl cake for me too, please 🙂
It’s nobody’s fault that you and your husband work 40 hours a week and still scraping to get by….find a better job. Try not to talk to much shit because you never know your ass might need this same system one day because NO JOB IS PROMISED TO US and some people really do get into harsh situations.
Not everyone on assistance does NOT work, I work 40 hours a week, and get EBT, it is not alot but it helps, my husband is disabled, and cannot work, therefore putting the responsibility on me to take care of him, myself, and daughter, so the next time you see someone pulling out their ebt card, do not judge, you do NOT know their situation, and yes I buy cookies, or certain items here and there, because my child enjoys them, I have been working since I was 13 and worked for 15 years before the use of this card, I put taxes in, and I promise your measly taxes taken out do not solely go to EBT cards, it gets spread out into all of the governments DEBT!!!!!!! Yes there are those that abuse it, just like there are those that abuse other things, get over yourself and worry about your own life, how exhausting it must be to muster in others spending habits…..
i hate it when peple just judge and assume that people that use ebt cad are either lazy and use it for durgs. dont judge without even knowing each persons sitiuation. i work full time and single mom its hard being single mom with bills and i do my son some cookies here and there. but if it werent for the ebt money id would have no food for me or my son.. dont judge me you dont know me…
and thanks every one i was not sure if i could purchase a cake with ebt. my sons birthday is coming up and would like to get him one..
I was laid off from my job. Worked over 40-hours a week. I have been laid off since the end of February and have been looking for jobs almost everyday. Well, now it’s my twin boys 5th birthday today. I have no money to purchase a cake so you better bet your ass I am going to purchase it with my EBT card. Just because I am suffering and hardly getting by doesn;t mean that my kids shouldn’t get a birthday cake. Heck, they aren’t even really getting any gifts. So if anyone has a problem with that I say SHAME on you!
Thank GOD I can atleast get them a cake or I would be even more saddened than I already am now. It really hurst when you can not get your children the things they deserve for being such good kids.
I am a single mother and HAVE ALWAYS worked. I have also never received child support.
So maybe some of you people should just stop and think about what you write some times. I know there are a lot of people that use the system to its fullest. I however have no other choice until I find a job.
Happy Birthday to my little ones……….
I was 4 months pregnant when my husband got kicked out of the military they took his last check and we barely had food to eat. Ebt saved me from starving when I was pregnant. I walked to work in 112 degree heat everyday until I started blacking out from stress. Best believe I will be buying my son a cake for his birthday. Now my husband works at mcdonalds and I am trying to find a job. So unless you want to come to my home and pay my bills you can shut up and stick your complaints up your butt. We do what we can to get by and if that includes asking for help I will. I will do anything for my sons well being. Even if that means being on food stamps
I myself am pregnant, moms birthday is Thursday and wished I could find a job or get cash to get her a gift so I thought maybe I could get her a lil cake and cook dinner with the only income I have …my food stamps… its the best I can do. BTw we are not lazy I’m exhausted from going everywhere looking for a job and seems like no one wants to hire a pregnant lady!
I agree some people are abusing foodstamps but I am on EBT and I wanted to know if I could buy a cake for my child because I am not that creative and I believe all my hard earn money taken away from me over the years makes up. Its not socialist to help the needy out. I don’t understand where you got that from. The only way of getting rid of welfare is lowering cost of living, raising minimum wage, and putting a cap on the length of time a family can be on it. This program was design to help people. Your not happy with the way politics is ran go to another country where they tell you who you are, when and where you $hit, and throw you in a cell for free speech. No where is perfect, be happy you live here.
Ok I think some people need to let up some and relizes we all need a little help with something. I recieve EBT,SSI, and Section 8 Program. I also drives a 2010 Durengo Jeep and have flat screens and 2 computers and a lap top my rent is 250 a month and i recieve 650 for ebt and 1285 for SSI because my son is ADHD. I also recieve 820 a month for child support my daughter. I am currently trying to get a career not just a job. Some people in this world needs these programs to help them establish a better life. I use to work but currently had to make a decision if I want to be someone else employee or be my own boss. People that has something to say about someone using these progams are mad because they arent able to get them. We all pay taxes regardless if it was out of a check buy cigs paying gas paying insurrance daycare and so on you are still paying taxes everyone that spends a 1.00 or more or hell even 0.25 cents you still pay taxes towards it. Im not not put on this Earth to care what you feel about me. Hell you dont hear me complaining or a African American complainig about the 40 acers and a mule do you? Everybody has something to say. My sons birthday is in a couple of days and I’m taking him to the beach this weekend where Im going to use my SSI money and EBT to throw his party and buy a HUGE ASS SPIDERMAN CAKE. If you cant afford s trip or afford a cake thats your problem, Maybe the problem isnt that you cant afford good things maybe you just dont know how to budget. You sound like peopleyou that tries to buy foodstamps, because you have to much pride to get em yourself. Get a Life
I have to agree with many of you. Yes, there may be people who abuse the EBT system. Yet, there are people who abuse the tax system. There are people who steal time from their employers at their “40 hour” per week job. Abuse is EVERYWHERE not just on one program. My stance is this, people need to stop worrying about what is going on in someone else’s household. I get so tired of hearing “my tax dollars go to support you on EBT”. Let me tell you, your tax dollars go to so many places, you would be surprised to find out many of the places you truly don’t support or want to know about. Not all recipients of EBT are lazy or do not work. I worked part-time after being laid off from a full-time job and received benefits. Stop judging people. You never know when your time will come. Stop thinking that because you make $140,000 TODAY you will be making that TOMORROW. I don’t care how much money you have saved up. See how fast that saved money goes once you are laid off for 6 months. Stop the judging.
What some people fall to realize is some EBT users had job @ one point in time.Everybody holling my tax money you get the money back @ the end of the year. I’m so tried of hearing this some people just need help. I’m not saying just abuse it but feed your family.To everyone that has a job count your blessing because, we all a paycheck away from being “HOMELESS”.
I agree, everyone is a paycheck away from being homeless. My husband had a job just two months ago and unfourtunately lost his job. I immediately filed for food stamps. We went from having nearly $800 a week coming in, to having $240 from unemployment. We have two kids, mortgage, utilities, and vehicle notes. When my husband had a job, there were times when we had no clue where the money was going to come from to get groceries. Now that we have them its nice to know that I can not only feel my family’s stomach, but I can put stuff in the freezers should we fall on hard times again. Now my husband is not a lazy man. He has put in over 20 applications and still.has not heard anything. I would rather him have a job, then be unemployed and relying on unemployment and ebt. I.did, however, have a friend whose husband made $10k a month and filed for food stamps flailing she was seperated, that I have a huge problem. with. The simple fact is, there are those who truly need it and those who abuse it. But why should those who need it have to suffer for the idiots who abuse it. You don’t know what those people who were buying the cake story is…so let them eat cake.
ok first off, let me start by telling you that most of you on here are ignorant. I am on ebt and i’m not a lazy drug addict. I don’t sit back and laugh at everyone for their tax dollars going to waste while i’m enjoying my hostess brand ding dongs. I am 28 years old. I have 2 kids. I graduated highschool. I have been with the father of both my children since I was 16 and we had our first child at 18. I have worked every year that he has been born except for the first. I work as much as I can but I still need that extra help because I don’t feel safe leaving my children with a stranger and having to depend on others to watch them. Especially with all the pedophiles and perverted creeps in this world. But needless to say I work and bust my ass off everyday to provide for my children. There are true people in need in this world and I don’t think they should be classified as a bum or judged by what others do. Just because some people on the system do it, does not mean that everyone does. If that were the case, I’m sure your neighbor has some dirty little secret and smokes weed on the weekend or i’m sure your stuck in a dead end trashy neighborhood full of thieves because you can’t afford to move. Does that mean you’re a thief too? No, it just means your doing what you can until you can make a better step forward. So fuck off all you judgemental assholes !
i have food stamps an i buy my sons birthday cake with them every year an see nothing wrong with it someppl kant afford it out of the pocket im a single mother an i bust my ass an work an still if i didnt recieve food stamps we wouldnt eat an thats not my fault its the cost of living an the minimum wadge that holds me bak . an i dnt feel not one bit bad about using food stamps to buy my son a birthday cake an for thoes of u who do get off ur high horses howbout it . !
I don’t think it matters if they buy a cake. Cake is considered food. People can eat cake – its edible, so what’s the problem with buying it.. I’m sure its not there just for decoration.
I have to say, a few months ago I would agree with some of you and now agree with the rest… My family of 5 is now on Food stamps. My husband was making $60,000 a year and was laid off, he is also visually impaired and finding work has proved to be a major challenge. Due to his visual restrictions, it is not feasible for him to “watch” the kids, but we have done the math and it doesn’t make sense for me to go to work to make even $10 an hour and pay for 2/3 to be in childcare.Even $15 an hour is roughly $500 week take home and would pay $400 for childcare. Not to mention the gas prices. And never in a million years did we think back when my husband was the director of department at a local casino, did we feel the need for me to pursue a career. We lived within our means and are grateful we were smart with our money and were able to live off our savings for the last 13months. However, that is now all gone and we have resorted to the state, as he is in limbo with disability and case workers trying to get us back on track. I stumbled upon this blog actually googling if I would be able to purchase a bakery cake for my daughters birthday. Don’t get me wrong, I am perfectly capable of baking her a cake, but a birthday is a special event for those fun cakes with princesses on top on beautiful rainbow colored frosting made to dazzle every little girl and boy who wanders to the bakery. Im convinced bakeries give away cookies so kids have a chance to take a look at those cakes and make their wish list to their parents. Now that being said, remember above when I talked about being smart with our money? The state gives us WAY, WAY, WAAAYYY more money for food than is necessary. We get almost TRIPLE the money per month than any budget I ever had set for us. We only have one fridge and a small deep freezer, so it’s not like I can just buy up everything each month and then have a place to store it. Now also note, that the money carries over, so if a family chooses to save a little each month for that upcoming birthday (or wedding), then so be it. The money can’t be spent on ANYTHING but food, believe me, I wish I could swipe it at the water, gas or electric company, but I can’t. So I WILL be one of those moms, on food stamps, an EDUCATED, TAX PAYING mom, who has a house full of food already, that will be purchasing a bakery made cake for both of my daughters up coming birthdays. Why? Why not? **But also let me tell you that, you WON’T then see me pay cash for my cigarettes and alcohol. THAT PISSES ME OFF TO KNOW END!!! That is a whole different blog I could rant on. 😉 Don’t judge if you don’t know the facts.
**Also, in order for my daughter to celebrate her birthday with her classmates, she HAS to bring store bought cupcakes. School district policy. Even if I didn’t buy a cake for her birthday, I sure as heck am not going to send her to school on her birthday w/o anything to share with her friends. But I will be smart about it and purchase the mini cupcakes. It’s 1/2 the price. 😉
I have SNAP/EBT/Food stamps since I got laid off. I have not eaten this well since I was single. Although, I do feel a little guilty buying steaks, shrimp and lobster with them, I never really mind. They give us $450 per month and we can’t find enough to buy. It’s really a good deal if your keen enough to not be “above the fact” that food stamps could add an addition $450 per month to your monthly income. Not to mention, with the problem in social services, I actually make more money on unemployment and food stamps than I did working as a real estate appraiser. I get $400 per week and $450 per month with SNAP. I also qualify to pay only $20 per month for electricity. Minus the fact that I no longer have to pay $150 per month in parking and a commute to the city, I am actually MAKING more being “in need of assistance” than I would working. I plan on milking this until it drys up, 1 year vacation!
It is people and comments like this that make others think the way they do. If you are an ABLE-bodied adult who is ABLE to get a job, then you most certainly should NOT be ‘milking this’ and taking away from others who might not be ABLE-bodied or ABLE to find a job. There are too many of you who simply sit back and choose to live off of others. Those of us who don’t CHOOSE to be unemployed or underpaid feel shame in having to get HELP to survive. Yes, when I was on unemployment, I did make more at that time than I did when I was working…but there was a tainted feel to it. Knowing that I wasn’t providing for my own family and had to rely on others to do that for me was disparaging. Even now that I’m working, I still can’t do it all on my own and rely on foodstamps, and that does make me feel like a failure to a point. Most of us who get help aren’t trying to ‘milk’ the system. You make all of us look bad. Shame on you for your comment.
I own a custom cake shop and a I had a woman call me a few days ago and started complaining that she can’t find a “custom cake shop” that accepts food stamps and that I “NEED” to start accepting them “cuz I’d be making a lot of money if I did! haha.”
REALLY?! Gee, ya think I might have thought of that when I decided to go into business IF it was something that would LEGITIMATELY make me money AND if I felt it was a MORAL thing to do?!
I told her that I know that Walmart accepts food stamps for cakes as far as I knew and she said she knew that, but wanted something “special” this time. Well, when I told her my minimum price she just hung up! lol Firstly, I LOOOVE the ignorance of unknowledgeable people (especially one’s that leech off of others like the government) that haven’t a CLUE how long a custom cake takes to make, on top of the huge cost difference there is in terms of the ingredients in a Wal-Mart cake vs. a scratch cake from a “custom cake shop.”
Lastly, I do not want to support people on welfare that want to spend their welfare checks on a luxury item. I do feel strongly that it just isn’t right! If you want a “custom cake,” which IS a luxury item, then you need to use your OWN hard earned money to buy that cake, not taxpayers dollars (like my own for example).
That’s my personal opinion, but I do feel strongly about it!
Look im a single mother of 4. and well i use my ebt card for each and everyone of there BIRTHDAY CAKES! sometimes us single parents or parents in general are not able to afford to get them anything at all for their birthdays but a cake. so to be honest the 45.00cake does make them happy cuz their eyes light up with excitement. And to be honest if you had kids you would understand that sparkle of seeing your kids be happy gives you everything. Now im a mother that will do just about everything possible for my kids. understand that god has everyone going through their own storm for his reasoning. so just remember the verse that says dont cast a stone at anyone for sin if you cant cast one to ur self first. So before you pass judgement on something you know so little about make sure your own closet is clean before u talk about someone elses. And i work a full time job myself. I still get foodstamps cuz life alone hasnt been as easy as others. so im just gonna pray and ask god to forgive you and your passment of judgement towards others. god bless you!
I pay taxes just like you do so really its not a big deal the shit people like you should really throw a fit about it aborations and starving children all over even the elderly that are mistreated and our troops that cant recieve medical or any of that by all means i have a sister that is in the army and is relying on foodstamps to help feed her kids so are you gonna tell a person that goes to fight for your freedom to not buy a ” LUXURY” CAKE please it get ate and aslong as that happens its considered a food item so get over it
I choose not to be judgmental of others. I think it’s great that people are loving enough to get their child, or any other deserving friend or family member, something special for their special day . But one thing that the “that’s my tax money!” crowd is not considering, is that many of these families who receive assistance are also working, and yes, also paying taxes. Are they not also entitled to benefit from their own tax dollars as well?
I am a single mom who has been fortunate enough to have an amazing career for the majority of my adult life and have never qualified for any kind of government assistance because of my income. But recently, I decided to take what could possibly be the biggest gamble of my life and resign from my career to pursue a degree as a Professional Pilot at a well known Aerospace Institution. Here I am, 31 years old and a full time student…again! It’s surreal.
But now that I have no income, I sucked up all my stubborn pride and applied for a Food Card. It only made the hardest decision of my life even harder, but I did it. But think about it. Why not? Why should I not be able to benefit from the all the tax dollars that I have paid into these assistance programs for the past 13 years?
I am blessed enough to be attending the nations best aviation college. Eventually, I will be back in the 25-33% tax brackets when I get hired with major airline. I will be paying more in taxes than the average family (ask any pilot haha). My point is, honestly if I feel like buying a bakery cake for my child’s 5th birthday coming up, I’m going to do it because that’s my money too. Also, you can feed 20 people with a 1/4 sheet cake from Publix for $21.99 which is hardly enough to cause such animosity towards others. I hope I have helped some of you see things from a different perspective. I have posted my source about the cake price below just for good measure. Have a great day everyone!
http://www.publix.com/food/catalog/Bakery/DecoratedCakes/Information.do
I So agree well said
I work full time, and then go home every day and work some more to take care of my kids. I don’t appreciate those people who get food stamps and abuse the system. I wish there was a better way to weed those people out so the ones who truly need it and don’t abuse it are the only ones getting it. I agree with all of you who are frustrated with the abuse of food stamps. However, just because you see someone using a EBT card, don’t assume they are lazy and just sitting at home while you are paying your taxes toward their purchases. There are plenty of people that get food stamps because they need them. Many even work just as much as you do, and I bet some may even work more than you do. I should know, I’m one of them. When I use my EBT card, I am embarrassed and ashamed that my family is in this situation, but I do the best I can. My wonderful husband who provided for our family for years got cancer and couldn’t work for a few years, during and after treatment. Fortunately, we have good health insurance (that I pay a LOT for) which paid for the treatment that saved his life, but since then, we have only my meager earning to live off of… And our food stamps. Thank goodness for that, because otherwise my kids would go hungry. We have no choice but tobrely on piblic assistance until my husband is healthy, and these days, lucky enough to find another job. Don’t jump to conclusions when you see that EBT card being used… You have no idea what that person’s situation or circumstances are or the struggles they are having to deal with already. And just because I use and EBT card doesn’t mean my purchases are open to scrutiny. I follow the rules of the program, so whatever I choose to buy that complies with those rules is my choice and my business. If you don’t agree, then do what you can to change the rules, but until then, you mind your business and I’ll mind mine.
When my husband and I got married in 2008 our combined income was $300,000.00 per year. We lived in a nice loft in Atlanta and drove new cars and even had our “Sunday” car. Then he was demoted and his income was cut by 50% because of company cut backs. Then I became very ill and unable to work and we lost my income all together. Because of my illness I am no longer able to work in the fied I am trained in. I can either work in fast food or go back to school and get a degree in another field I am able to work in. Being a college edcuated person, I made the SMART choice. Therefore, he is the only person working at the moment. HE pays for my tuition, we also have a newborn baby girl to care for and the ONLY help we get is EBT. EVERY SINGLE TIME I go to the store and pull out that card I feel SHAME. Food stamps do not buy dipers. We now live in a one bedroom mobile home, in “small town” Alabama, that is so old we cannot get insurance on. We have ONE car that is older than I am. To top it all off he lost that job and now, thankfully, after all our savings were depleted, has another job making $13,000.00 per year. We are doing our part to not live off of the system. We live within our means and are doing our best to get back on our feet. Until then, if I want to go buy a luxury bakery cake that costs $300.00 with every dime of my food stamps that month birthday or not, I’ll go buy a GODDAMNED cake!
THAT’S MY RIGHT AS AN AMERICAN, AND MY OPINION, BUT I FEEL STRONGLY ABOUT THAT AS WELL!
Eligible Food Items
Households CAN use SNAP benefits to buy:
Foods for the household to eat, such as:
— breads and cereals;
— fruits and vegetables;
— meats, fish and poultry; and
— dairy products.
Seeds and plants which produce food for the household to eat.
In some areas, restaurants can be authorized to accept SNAP benefits from qualified homeless, elderly, or disabled people in exchange for low-cost meals.
Households CANNOT use SNAP benefits to buy:
Beer, wine, liquor, cigarettes or tobacco;
Any nonfood items, such as:
— pet foods;
— soaps, paper products; and
— household supplies.
Vitamins and medicines.
Food that will be eaten in the store.
Hot foods.
Additional Information
“Junk Food” & Luxury Items
The Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (the Act) defines eligible food as any food or food product for home consumption and also includes seeds and plants which produce food for consumption by SNAP households. The Act precludes the following items from being purchased with SNAP benefits: alcoholic beverages, tobacco products, hot food and any food sold for on-premises consumption. Nonfood items such as pet foods, soaps, paper products, medicines and vitamins, household supplies, grooming items, and cosmetics, also are ineligible for purchase with SNAP benefits.
Soft drinks, candy, cookies, snack crackers, and ice cream are food items and are therefore eligible items
Seafood, steak, and bakery cakes are also food items and are therefore eligible items
Since the current definition of food is a specific part of the Act, any change to this definition would require action by a member of Congress. Several times in the history of SNAP, Congress had considered placing limits on the types of food that could be purchased with program benefits. However, they concluded that designating foods as luxury or non-nutritious would be administratively costly and burdensome. Further detailed information about the challenges of restricting the use of SNAP benefits can be found here:
Report — Implications of Restricting the use of
Food Stamp Benefits
Energy Drinks
When considering the eligibility of energy drinks, and other branded products, the primary determinant is the type of product label chosen by the manufacturer to conform to Food and Drug Administration (FDA) guidelines:
Energy drinks that have a nutrition facts label are eligible foods
Energy drinks that have a supplement facts label are classified by the FDA as supplements, and are therefore not eligible
Live Animals
Live animals may not be purchased with SNAP benefits.
Pumpkins, Holiday Gift Baskets, and Special Occasion Cakes
Pumpkins are edible and eligible for purchase with SNAP benefits. However, inedible gourds and pumpkins that are used solely for ornamental purposes are not eligible items.
Gift baskets that contain both food and non-food items, are not eligible for purchase with SNAP benefits if the value of the non-food items exceeds 50 percent of the purchase price.
Items such as birthday and other special occasion cakes are eligible for purchase with SNAP benefits as long as the value of non-edible decorations does not exceed 50 percent of the purchase price of the cake.
Last modified: 02/16/2012
Taken from: USDA.GOV
USDA – Food and Nutrition Service March 1, 2007
IMPLICATIONS OF RESTRICTING THE USE OF FOOD STAMP BENEFITS – SUMMARY
By most standards, almost all American diets are in need of improvement. Given interest in using Federal
nutrition assistance programs to promote healthy choices, some suggest that food stamp recipients should
be prohibited from using their benefits to buy foods with limited nutritional value. However, there are
serious problems with the rationale, feasibility and potential effectiveness of this proposal.
No clear standards exist for defining foods as good or bad, or healthy or not healthy.
• Federal dietary guidance uniformly applies to the total diet – there are no widely accepted standards
to judge the “healthfulness” of individual foods.
• Foods contain many components that can affect health, and diets contain many foods. As a result, it
is challenging to determine whether – and the point at which – the presence or absence of desirable
nutrients outweighs the presence of nutrients to be avoided in ruling a food “in” or “out”.
Implementation of food restrictions would increase program complexity and costs.
• There are more than 300,000 food products on the market, and an average of 12,000 new products
were introduced each year between 1990 and 2000. The task of identifying, evaluating, and tracking
the nutritional profile of every food available for purchase would be substantial. The burden of
identifying which products met Federal standards would most likely fall on an expanded bureaucracy
or on manufacturers and producers asked to certify that their products meet Federal standards.
• Responsibility for enforcing compliance would rest in the hands of employees at check-out counters
in 160,000 stores across the nation. While many have modern scanning and inventory control
systems, others – especially small stores and specialty markets – do not.
• New effort would be needed to help participants avoid the rejection of purchases at the check-out
counter, an event with the potential to reduce productivity at the register and stigmatize participants.
Restrictions may be ineffective in changing the purchases of food stamp participants
• About 70 percent of all food stamp participants – those who receive less than the maximum benefit –
are expected to purchase a portion of their food with their own money. There is no guarantee that
restricting the use of food stamps would affect food purchases – other than substituting one form of
payment (cash) for another (food stamps).
No evidence exists that food stamp participation contributes to poor diet quality or obesity.
• There is no strong research-based evidence to support restricting food stamp benefits. Food stamp
recipients are no more likely than higher income consumers to choose foods with little nutritional
value; thus the basis for singling out low-income food stamp recipients and restricting their food
choices is not clear.
There are better ways to work towards the goal of healthier diets that do not require such restrictions.
Incentives – rather than restrictions – that encourage purchases of certain foods or expanded nutrition
education to enable participants to make healthy choices are more practical options and likely to be more
effective in achieving the dietary improvements that promote good health.
USDA – Food and Nutrition Service 1 March 1, 2007
IMPLICATIONS OF RESTRICTING THE USE OF FOOD STAMP BENEFITS
Introduction
By most standards, almost all American diets are in need of improvement, and obesity has
emerged as the Nation’s most pressing health and nutrition issue. Because of concerns about
poor diet, overweight, and obesity among low-income Americans, there is considerable interest
in using Federal nutrition assistance programs to promote healthy choices. Some argue that food
stamp recipients should be prohibited from using their benefits to buy foods with limited
nutritional value (commonly described as “junk” foods).1 The Food Stamp Act currently places
few limits on the use of food stamp benefits, as long as they are used to buy food to eat at home.
The idea of restricting the use of food stamp benefits may be appealing on its face. However,
upon closer examination, serious concerns emerge regarding the feasibility and rationale for the
proposed restriction.
• No clear standards exist to define foods as good or bad, or healthy or not healthy;
• Food restrictions would pose major implementation challenges and increase program
complexity and costs;
• Restrictions may not change the nature of participants’ food purchases;
• No evidence exists which indicates that food stamp benefits directly contribute to poor food
choices and negative dietary outcomes, such as obesity.
Making Distinctions among Foods
It is not a simple task to draw a bright line between foods that contribute to a healthy diet and
those that do not. Common sense suggests avoiding foods that are low in nutrients but high in
some combination of calories, fats, added sugars, and salt. In practice, however, drawing the
distinction between healthy and unhealthy foods is far more difficult.
The Dietary Guidelines for Americans, MyPyramid, the American Dietetic Association, and
most nutritionists take a total diet approach to communicate healthful eating advice, placing
emphasis on the overall pattern of food eaten, rather than any one food or meal. Mainstream
nutrition guidance embodies the concept that “there are no bad foods, only bad diets.” Thus, the
most common advice is to “go easy” on or limit foods with limited nutritional value and stay
1 This suggestion actually has a rather long history. The House Committee on Agriculture considered and rejected
an amendment to eliminate foods with negligible or little nutritional value in its deliberations that led to the Food
Stamp Act of 1977, saying that the amendment was “a cure worse than the disease of so-called ‘junk food’” (House
Report No. 95-464, page 333, June 24, 1977).
USDA – Food and Nutrition Service 2 March 1, 2007
physically active to maintain a healthy weight.2 If food stamp policy is to move away from the
consensus of the nutrition community and instead draw a line between good foods and bad foods,
decisions are needed on several difficult issues. For example:
• Should standards for a healthy diet be applied to individual foods? The Dietary
Guidelines for Americans and the Dietary Reference Intakes provide benchmarks for
determining nutritional adequacy in the United States. All of these standards apply to the
total diet, however. It is not clear that the same standards should apply to individual foods,
nor how such a thing could be done. There are recommended limits, for example, on the
amount of fat in a healthy diet. Yet there are individual foods – such as some meats and nuts
– that are generally recognized as making positive contributions to a balanced diet, but which
have a high proportion of fat. To simply eliminate such foods would not necessarily result in
a net improvement in a person’s diet.3
• If the standards for individual foods are different than the standards for the total diet,
how does one determine the appropriate benchmarks? Key issues to be resolved include:
• Which nutrients or ingredients should be considered? Scientists have identified
dozens of vitamins, minerals, amino acids, fatty acids, and other nutrients that play an
essential role in human nutrition. The larger the number of ingredients or nutrients
considered, the more difficult it may be to find foods that simultaneously satisfy multiple
criteria for “healthfulness”. Although it may be more practical to limit consideration to a
handful of nutrients of public health concern – assuming a consensus on which nutrients
qualify as public health concerns – such limits may unintentionally exclude foods high in
nutrients not considered.
• Are “healthy” foods characterized by the absence of nutrients to be avoided, the
presence of desirable nutrients, or a combination of both? The choice here is not
straightforward. Diet sodas, for example, may pass a test based only on the absence of
undesirable nutrients: they have no fat or sugars, are low in calories, and contain little
sodium. Based on these criteria alone, they would appear preferable to orange juice.
Similarly, some brands of potato chips have less sodium per serving than some popular
brands of breakfast cereal. Characterizing foods based on the presence of desirable
nutrients can be similarly problematic. Doughnuts are not often a source of desirable
nutrients, but at least one manufacturer offers a “SuperDonut” fortified with protein,
vitamins, and minerals – along with significant calories, fat, and added sugars. Finally, if
both characteristics are important, one needs to determine the point at which the benefit
of desirable nutrients outweighs the presence of nutrients to be avoided or consumed in
2 Specifically, the Dietary Guidelines for Americans urge consumption of a variety of nutrient-dense foods and
beverages within and among the basic food groups while choosing foods that limit the intake of saturated and trans
fats, cholesterol, added sugars, salt, and alcohol.
3 Various local, state, and national organizations have established criteria to control individual foods sold in
competition with meals provided through the National School Lunch and Breakfast Programs. However, there are
some fundamental differences between voluntary guidelines that limit foods in school and statutory limits on food
stamp purchases. Most importantly, the number and range of “competitive” foods available in schools is much
smaller than the variety of foods in grocery stores.
USDA – Food and Nutrition Service 3 March 1, 2007
moderation. Some fortified breakfast cereals, for example, contain relatively high levels
of added vitamins and minerals, but are also high in added sugars and sodium. (See
Appendix A for more examples). The question then becomes which foods should be
permitted, and which should not?
• What is the most appropriate means of assessing the nutritional value of any given
food? In general, the basis for classifying foods must be sufficiently sophisticated to
make objective distinctions based on the nutritional value of the vast number of foods
available for sale. It must also be sufficiently simple to be workable. A number of
options are available: common sense, expert or stakeholder opinion, and formula-driven
assessments of ingredients or nutrient content (see appendix B for more detail). None is
without significant shortcomings.
Some have suggested giving each State the option to develop its own definition of allowable
foods. This option is problematic for several reasons. First, there is no scientific basis for
allowing nutrition standards to vary from place to place within the United States. Second, a State
option does not eliminate special-interest pressures; it simply shifts the location of the debate and
gives greater weight to local – sometimes parochial – interests. And third, variation in State
requirements will complicate retail industry compliance and increase the cost of doing business.
Implementation Challenges
Even if decisions could be made that distinguish allowable foods from restricted foods, there are
still difficult implementation challenges. Part of the difficulty stems from the enormous variety
and scale of the American food sector. The typical supermarket carries about 40,000 products on
its shelves. There are more than 300,000 food products available in the marketplace nationwide;
an average of about 12,000 new food items were introduced each year between 1990 and 2000.4
Program participants make roughly 1 billion food purchase transactions each year.5
The scale of the food sector creates three types of administrative and implementation problems:
identifying the specific foods (or food categories) that are allowed or excluded, supplying current
information on allowable foods to retailers and participants in a form that enables them to
comply with the rule, and monitoring and enforcing compliance.
• Identifying, evaluating, and tracking the nutritional profile of every food product
available for purchase in the constantly changing market would be an enormous
undertaking. Taken literally, the task would require judgments about the nutritional quality
of every existing and new food product. There is no existing data base – one that uniquely
identifies every food product and links it to a nutritional profile (through the Nutrition Facts
panel, for example) – that could support this operation; new data – and the resources and
4 Harris, J. Michael. “Food Product Introductions Continue to Decline in 2000.” FoodReview, Volume 25, Issue 1,
24-27, Spring 2002.
5 Olander, Carol, Erika Jones, and Steven Carlson. An Analysis of Food Stamp Benefit Redemption Patterns.
Report prepared by the Food and Nutrition Service, USDA, June 2006. Available at http://www.fns.usda.gov/oane.
USDA – Food and Nutrition Service 4 March 1, 2007
capacity to process these data – would be needed. This implies a significant expansion of
government responsibility and associated bureaucracy, at a significant cost.
The burden and cost for the Federal government could be reduced, but only by shifting it to
private business and, ultimately, consumers. For example, food manufacturers and
producers could be required to certify that their product meets the Federal standard for food
stamp purchases. These entities would be expected to pass the cost of complying with this
requirement on to consumers in the form of higher prices. It also raises the question of
whether – and if so, how – the Federal government should monitor and verify such
certifications. And unless certified products are labeled as such, there is still need to inform
authorized retailers in a manner that enables them to update their point-of-sale systems.
In addition, one could choose to declare entire food categories – such as carbonated
beverages, candy and gum, salty snack foods – as unallowable rather than individual foods.6
Unless the boundaries between categories are sharply drawn, however, this approach would
simply shift the burden and responsibility of determining which products fall into the broad
categories and which do not to retailers and their employees. Some boundaries – the
distinctions between some candy bars and fortified energy bars, or between carbonated soft
drinks and flavored sports drinks, for example – may never be as sharp as they need to be.
• New restrictions on the use of food stamps place the burden of enforcing compliance in
the hands of store employees at check-out counters across the nation. This may be
feasible in stores with modern scanning and inventory control systems. However, some of
the 160,000 stores authorized to accept food stamps – especially small stores and specialty
markets – do not have such system, posing a major employee training challenge for those
entities. Even in those stores with modern scanning equipment, implementation would
require development of means to periodically notify retailers of allowable foods and
modification of in-store systems to implement the distinctions. Moreover, confusion at the
register about allowable items (by either employees or recipients) would reduce productivity
at the register.
• Food stamp recipients would face increased complexity and potential for
embarrassment if restrictions on the use of benefits are substantially expanded. The
imposition of new food restrictions would require more effort by recipients to understand
which foods are allowed and which are not – suggesting that substantial resources would be
needed to educate participants on allowable food choices. Even with such efforts, however,
it is likely that some recipients will not always be able to keep track of which foods are
allowed, thus increasing the chances that some purchase transactions will be rejected at the
check-out counter. This has the potential to stigmatize participants by singling them out as
6 National School Lunch Program regulations, for example, prohibit the sale of food of minimal nutritional value
(FMNV) in competition with school meals. Foods are prohibited by category: soda water (carbonated beverages),
water ices, chewing gum, and certain candies. The definition of FMNV focuses on eight nutrients: protein, vitamin
A, vitamin C, niacin, riboflavin, thiamine, calcium, and iron. FMNV can be exempted from the prohibition if they
provide more than 5 percent of the Reference Daily Intakes per serving and per 100 calories (foods that are
artificially sweetened are assessed only on nutrients per serving).
USDA – Food and Nutrition Service 5 March 1, 2007
food stamp recipients, and may discourage some eligible low- income persons from
participating in the program.
• Finally, a new definition of ineligible items increases the likelihood of compliance
violations. Retailers that sell ineligible items can be disqualified from the program or
assessed a monetary penalty. Recipients that purchase ineligible items may be sanctioned.
Expanding the pool of ineligible items increases opportunities for non-compliance, expands
the need for oversight, and may increase the number of retailers or recipients found in
violation of program rules.
Effects of Restricting Food Stamp Benefits on Food Purchases
It is not clear that a limit on the acceptable uses of food stamp benefits would actually change the
nutrition profile of food purchases. Restricting the use of food stamps would not limit consumer
choice at all if food stamp recipients continue to purchase any food they want using their own
money. While food stamp benefits make up a substantial share of the food budget in most food
stamp households, they do not necessarily provide the entire food budget, nor are they expected
to do so.7 There is no way to know – other than through carefully designed and evaluated pilot
tests – to what extent the proposed restriction would have the desired effect of reducing
purchases of foods with limited nutritional value. But it is difficult to justify the substantial cost
and other burdens associated with identifying and enforcing new food restrictions given the very
real possibility that individuals would simply substitute one form of payment (cash) for another
(food stamps) in order to purchase unallowable foods.
One should also be wary of the possibility of unanticipated or unintended consequences. Limits
on the definition of allowable foods may create incentives for manufacturers to reformulate
products to satisfy the new rule. This may be a positive development if the industry finds ways
to improve the nutritional profile of the American food supply. It is not clear, however, that
simply fortifying more foods is a desirable response to the obesity epidemic.8 Similarly, blanket
restrictions on the purchase of higher fat foods may not serve the needs of families with young
children. Dietary advice to reduce the level of fat in food consumed does not apply to very
young children (who need fat for healthy development).
Relationship between Food Stamps, Food Consumption, and Dietary Outcomes
The body of research on the Food Stamp Program does not support the view that restricting food
choices will result in more healthful food purchases and consumption or improved dietary
7 Roughly 70 percent of all food stamp households receive less than the maximum food stamp benefit, and so are
expected to contribute a portion of their cash income to food purchases (see Table A-1 in Characteristics of Food
Stamp Households: Fiscal Year 2005). According to the Consumer Expenditure Survey, average food expenditures
by low-income households (for both food at home and away from home) exceeded the average food stamp benefit
by about 40% in FY2004. While not all low income households are necessarily food stamp recipients, this data does
suggests that some food stamp households have money for food expenditures which could be used for purchase of
prohibited items.
8 There are instances when fortified foods may be advantageous. These include providing additional sources of
certain nutrients that might otherwise be present only in low amounts in some food sources, providing nutrients in
highly bioavailable forms, and where the fortification addresses a documented public health need.
USDA – Food and Nutrition Service 6 March 1, 2007
outcomes. Research clearly indicates that participation in the program increases household
spending on food. Food stamp recipients shop frequently and use careful shopping practices –
such as comparing prices across stores, looking for store specials and stocking up on bargains –
in order to stretch their food buying resources. A majority of benefits are spent on basic food
items: vegetables, fruits, grain products, meat and meat alternatives account for nearly threequarters
of the money value of food used by food stamp households.9
Preliminary findings from a forthcoming USDA analysis of national food consumption data
indicate that food stamp recipients are somewhat less likely to have adequate intakes of many
key nutrients – including Vitamins A, B6, C, and E; thiamin; riboflavin; folate; magnesium; iron,
and zinc – than are higher-income individuals. But these differences are not the result of greater
consumption of foods which would be likely targets for restrictions. For example, food stamp
recipients are no more likely to consume soft drinks than are higher-income individuals, and are
less likely to consume sweets and salty snacks.10
Food Category Percent of Food Stamp
Program Participants
Consuming at Least Once
per Day
Percent of Persons with
Income over 130% of
Poverty Consuming at Least
Once per Day
Soft Drinks (Regular and
Sugar-Free)* 61.0 59.2
Sweets 61.6 72.1
Salty Snacks 29.6 36.5
Sweets include jello, candy, ice cream, pudding, Ice/popsicles, muffins, sweet rolls, cake/cupcakes, cookies, pies/cobblers, pastries and
doughnuts. Salty snacks include corn-based salty snacks, pretzels/party mix, popcorn, and potato chips.
* Difference is not statistically significant.
Finally, no evidence exists that Food Stamp Program participation causes obesity. While
poverty is associated with obesity in some population groups and Food Stamp Program
participation is closely linked with poverty, the independent effect of program participation on
obesity is unknown.11
Taken together, this research suggests that achieving dietary improvement among food stamp
recipients is a complex challenge. It is not likely to be met by prohibiting use of benefits for a
group of foods perceived as having limited nutritional value. Low-income consumers and food
stamp recipients are subject to the same factors that influence food choices throughout our
society – including marketing strategies, cultural preferences, the value of convenience, and
9 U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service. Making America Stronger: A Profile of the Food
Stamp Program. September, 2005. Available at http://www.fns.usda.gov/oane.
10 Special preliminary tabulations of 1999-2002 data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey
prepared for the Food and Nutrition Service by Abt Associates.
11 Linz, Paul, Michael Lee, and Loren Bell. Obesity, Poverty, and Participation in Nutrition Assistance Programs.
Report prepared by Alta Systems for the Food and Nutrition Service, USDA, February 2005. Available on-line at
http://www.fns.usda.gov/oane
USDA – Food and Nutrition Service 7 March 1, 2007
personal tastes. Restricting the use of food stamp benefits would change only one variable in the
complex calculus that results in a more – or less – healthful diet. More fundamentally, as the
problems of poor food choices, unhealthy diets, and excessive weight characterize all segments
of American society, the basis for singling out low-income food stamp recipients and imposing
unique restrictions on their food choices is not clear.
Conclusion
The idea of restricting the food choices of food stamp recipients as a means of promoting dietary
improvement among low-income Americans has serious conceptual and practical flaws. There
are better alternatives for promoting healthier diets. One could, for example, consider incentives
– rather than restrictions – to encourage purchases of selected foods (fruits and vegetables or
whole grains, for example) by food stamp participants. Or one could expand and strengthen
nutrition education and promotion to make sure that participants have the knowledge, skills, and
motivation they need to make healthy choices. These approaches are more practical, and likely
to be more effective than restricting choice in achieving the dietary improvements that promote
good health.
USDA’s 2007 Farm Bill proposals include a $100 million investment to establish a five-year
competitive grants demonstration program targeted at developing and testing solutions to the
rising rates of obesity. These efforts would include rigorous independent evaluations to identify
effective approaches, such as incentives at point-of-sale for purchases of fruits and vegetables by
food stamp participants, grants to connect food stamp shoppers with farmers markets, and
integrated communication and education programs to promote healthy diets and physical
activity.
USDA – Food and Nutrition Service 8 March 1, 2007
Appendix A: The Slippery Slope of Characterizing Foods
Why is it so hard make distinctions among individual foods?
Part of the problem is that foods contain many components that singly or collectively can affect
health, and diets contain many foods. Attention paid to the presence or absence of single
nutrients and to the relationship between those nutrients and particular diseases often comes at
the expense of attention to the overall dietary pattern. For example, at the substantial risk of
oversimplification, concerns about obesity may lead one to focus on calories and added sugars;
concerns about chronic heart disease may lead to a focus on saturated fats, trans fats, and
cholesterol; and concerns about hypertension may lead to a focus on sodium. Too narrow a
focus, however, can lead one onto a slippery slope with puzzling results.
Consider these examples, derived from information on the Nutrition Facts panel:
• Soft drinks have less total fat, saturated fat, and sodium per serving than some granola bars.
• One manufacturer markets a low-calorie carbonated beverage fortified with calcium and real
fruit juice that has fewer calories and total sugars (though more added sugars) per serving
than a typical serving of orange juice.
• Some brands of potato chips have less sodium per serving than some of the most popular
brands of breakfast cereal.
• Some candy bars have a lower percentage of calories from fat and less saturated fat than a
serving of cheddar cheese.
At least two cautions apply to these comparisons. First, each is based on the serving size listed
on food labels. While subject to regulation, serving sizes do not always reflect consumption
patterns; comparisons of food as actually consumed may produce different results. Second,
some of the foods listed here have other beneficial nutrients, and some do not. Drinkable
yogurts, for example, can provide 25 percent or more of a wide range of vitamins and minerals in
each serving; most soft drinks are not a significant source of any nutrient other than sugars.
USDA – Food and Nutrition Service 9 March 1, 2007
Appendix B: Means of Assessing Nutritional Value
Even if agreement can be reached in principle on a conceptual approach to distinguish allowable
foods from restricted foods, there remains the challenge of putting such definition into practice.
Several approaches could be considered; however, each has significant drawbacks.
• Expert and/or Stakeholder Opinion: One could rely on “common sense” or the judgment
of expert panels made up of dietetics professionals, physicians, public health researchers, and
other stakeholders (consumers, producers, manufacturers, retailers). The problem with
common sense and expert or stakeholder panels is that both can be influenced by a number of
factors, not all of which are necessarily related to the nutritional value of the food under
consideration. It is also unlikely that expert panels could render judgment on over 300,000
separate food items; they are more likely to recommend exclusion of broad categories (soft
drinks, cookies, cakes, salty snacks, for example). This simply defers the item-by-item
decisions that need to be made to implement a restriction at the check-out counters.
• Foods of Minimal Nutritional Value: National School Lunch Program regulations prohibit
the sale of food of minimal nutritional value (FMNV) in competition with school meals.
Foods are prohibited by category: soda water (carbonated beverages), water ices, chewing
gum, and certain candies (including hard candies, jellies and gums, marshmallow candies,
fondant, licorice, spun candy, and candy-coated popcorn). The definition of FMNV focuses
on eight nutrients: protein, vitamin A, vitamin C, niacin, riboflavin, thiamine, calcium, and
iron. FMNV can be exempted from the prohibition if they provide more than 5 percent of the
Reference Daily Intakes per serving and per 100 calories (foods that are artificially
sweetened are assessed only on nutrients per serving). This approach is a conservative one,
identifying a limited set of foods that make the least contribution to a healthy diet.
• A 5/20 Rule: The Food and Drug Administration advises consumers to limit certain
nutrients listed on the Nutrition Facts panel while consuming adequate amounts of others.12
Foods providing 5 percent or less of the daily value (DV) are considered low in particular
nutrients; foods that have 20 percent or more of the DV are considered high in the nutrient.
Thus, for example, an allowable food could be defined as one which contains no more than
20 percent of the DV of total and saturated fats, cholesterol or sodium and no less than 5
percent of the DV of at least one of these nutrients: dietary fiber, vitamin A, vitamin C,
calcium, and iron.13 One serious limitation of this approach is the absence of a daily
reference value for added sugars and trans fats.14 In addition, some nutrients of concern
across the lifespan are not required on the food label (such as potassium). Application of this
approach may also conflict with current health recommendations for certain foods (such as
certain nuts and fish high in omega-3 fatty acids). In practice, relatively few snack foods
12 Food and Drug Administration. (2004). How to Understand and Use the Nutrition Facts Label, available on-line
at http://www.cfsan.fda.gov.
13 Note that this is intended only as an illustration, and alternate levels of the thresholds and combinations of
nutrients could be considered.
14 Note also that the sugars listed on the Nutrition Facts label include naturally occurring sugars (like those in fruit
and milk) as well as those added to a food or drink.
USDA – Food and Nutrition Service 10 March 1, 2007
would fail the 20 percent threshold for total fats and for saturated fat, and many of those that
pass the 5 percent threshold would do so on the basis of their fiber content.
• Food Composition Rules: An analysis of foods under this approach would assess the level
of selected ingredients contained in foods. This approach directly addresses the association
between over consumption of certain food components and current public health problems.
In practice ingredients could be assessed by their relative position on the ingredient list.
Foods in which selected ingredients – including, for example, caloric sweeteners (including
sugar and high-fructose corn syrup), hydrogenated oils, or salt – appear among the primary
listed ingredients would fall onto the restricted list. This approach gives no weight to the
presence of desirable nutrients. In addition, because ingredients are listed by weight, some
foods that provide a relatively large proportion of the daily value of nutrients that should be
avoided or consumed in moderation – the salt in potato chips, for example – may not fall
onto the restricted list.
• Nutrient Density Measures: Drewnowski (2005) reviews various attempts to define and
quantify the nutrient density of foods. Past efforts to quantify nutrient density have been
based on a variety of calories-to-nutrient scores, nutrients-per-calorie indexes, and nutrientto-
nutrient ratios. Drewnowski proposes a naturally nutrient rich score based on the mean
percentage daily values for 14 nutrients in 2000 kcal of food.15 In addition to requiring
significant computational resources, the measure as defined is limited by the exclusion of all
fortified foods. In addition, saturated fat, sodium, and other nutrients whose consumption
should be limited, do not enter into the score.
15 Drewnowski, A. “Concept of a nutritious food: toward a nutrient density score.” American Journal of Clinical
Nutrition, Vol. 82, No. 4, 721-732. October 2005.
When one feels the need to speak about something so controversial, I believe they should be completely informed about that subject.
PLEASE VISIT USDA.GOV/SNAP
In regards to buying a cake ie wedding cake or birthday cake, go right ahead and do so. Majority of the time people don’t understand that at times that is the only thing a parent can buy for their child. Today is july 4th and it is my daughter’s first birthday. I can’t afford to buy decorations not even a birthday hat. What I can do is buy her a beautiful birthday cake off of my ebt and some barbecue itemss so she can enjoy herself. We are homeless and basically the ebt is a blessing so to hell with anyone who feels disgusted that I am going to buy hery a cake that is $80. I cant even get her a new pair of shoes. Being out of. Job for the last 6 months havve left
In regards to buying a cake ie wedding cake or birthday cake, go right ahead and do so. Majority of the time people don’t understand that at times that is the only thing a parent can buy for their child. Today is july 4th and it is my daughter’s first birthday. I can’t afford to buy decorations not even a birthday hat. What I can do is buy her a beautiful birthday cake off of my ebt and some barbecue itemss so she can enjoy herself. We are homeless and basically the ebt is a blessing so to hell with anyone who feels disgusted that I am going to buy hery a cake that is $80. I cant even get her a new pair of shoes. Being out of. Job foryy the last 6 months have left me in such a bad redicament. Yes there are people who abuse the system but that is with everything in life. But there are so many families like myself that the most expensive item at their wedding or child’s birthday is just the cake. Majority of the time the gifts are toothbrush, diapers, wipes, and few clothing items which being homeless you are ever so grateful for.
Wake up People! Its 2012. I have been working since i was 16. I had my 1st child when i was 25 when he was 1 i bought him an Winnie the Pooh birthday cake from Walmart. And you want to kno why not because ii could because my house caught on fire and we had nothing but foodstamps and medicare. So lets think we got to put a stop on buyin cakes because you know for sure that were takin over the world with foodstamps. I know i bought items ffor hiis party and the house and it last. Oh! I buy all the groceries for the house and we eat good. And iif i got some left i go buy crab legs and shrimp. Hope that piss some of yah off. And if you didnt know its very hard to get EBT and downgrading so dont think all of us want to go down there to the office and be ask all these personal questiions. And then someone telling you how much your family iis worth.
welll , im a teen mom , im 15 and have a daughter named aubrielle who will be two in a couple weeks , and Im not old enough to work so OBVIOUSLY im gonna buy her cake and everything else we eat with my ebt card . if we go without some stuff that we might normally get so we can go to our target bakery & get her a cake then thats NOBODYS buisness but ours 🙂
I work and I still qualify for SNAP, therefore, I will spend my SNAP benefits how I please as long as my family is fed. Its my tax money too. Just because people get SNAP doesnt mean they are lazy ass unemployed bums. Some families actually DONT make enough cash to survive. Its the people who get more benefits than they should that carelessly spend them.
Why are you hating? Dont you know that not everyone is as rich or blessed to hAve a descent job like you? Do you really think we like the fact that we are relying on the government? No! But at times like this, we had no choice, and buying a $45 cake is none of your business. Doesnt our hildren deserve to celebrate birthdays and its not like we buy it every week or everyday to celebrate. Dont be greedy. If dont mind, maybe you can give me your job then maybe i can be out of welfare. But if you do mind, then i suggest you shut up because you are not in our shoes. How dare you judge.
You definitely said a mouthful Cristy….
What does IT matter to you? If you were to loose your Job, had a mortgage and CHILDREN TO FEED, I bet you would have EBT. It doesn’t matter if someone buys CEREAL or a $45.00 cake. It’s frankly none of your business. Maybe you should just pray for yourself and the family going through hard times! Better yet, ill say a prayer for them! There’s alot more going on in this world you should be more concerned about!
have any of you losers every heard of MIND YOUR OWN DAMN BUSINESS or NONEYA!!!…what business is it of yours and why should it matter to your grimey asses!!!…GET A LIFE!!!…
That’s why people like u should mind your own business and shut the hell up. Talking about your tax dollars people with foodstamps have jobs to and pay their taxes just like you dump ass, you jealous fool…
I just hate stupid people
I don’t understand why people feel that those on foodstamps do not work. Actually, the majority of the recipients work full time jobs thus they are paying their share of taxes as well.
Maybe it’s cuz the child still deserves to have a nice birthday. Just because a child may not come from a wealthy family doesn’t mean he or she doesn’t deserve to feel special one day out of the year. I really dislike people who look at a situation and only see the money side of it! Life is more than a piece of paper that’s what’s wrong with this world now!
My husband and I lost our jobs at the end of 2010, three months apart due to no fault of our own. Because we had a good middle class salary we both had good unemployment benefits and were eligible for $68 a month in food stamps (we had one child at the time). In March of 2011 we moved half way across the county, away from all of our family, because my husband received a very good job offer. In June of 2012 we had our second child and in August of 2012 my husband lost his job again due to corporate down sizing, again, no fault of our own. I work part time because daycare is way too much money and my husband was fortunate to get another job, but making more than half the amount he was making. This made us eligible for food stamps again, but actually enough to supply us with 75% of our food needs.
We’ve lost our home, our state, a close family, but still have a smile on our faces and work hard. There is nothing wrong with us receiving food assistance and I will probably buy my daughter’s 10th Birthday cake with it if we still qualify in February (and way pray to God that we won’t have to receive state aid by then). We have always paid in to the system, we both still do, and I am so thankful that I live in a country that can help my family, and other families, when times are tough.
Right here is the right web site for everyone who wants to understand this topic.
You understand so much its almost tough to argue with you (not that I personally would want to…HaHa).
You definitely put a brand new spin on a subject that has
been written about for many years. Great stuff, just excellent!
Hey all, I came across this page on accident. I have been struggling with finding jobs and keeping my head above water… My fiancé is also having trouble with a job (he just recently got out of the army and no one seems to want a veteran) I search in google if I could buy a cake from the bakery with my ebt card and I got this. Yes I am on food stamps. No I’m not on them because I want the extra money. I am actually embarrassed when people see me with this card. But I have to do what I need for my daughter. I already feel like a bad mom because her birthday and Christmas won’t be great this year… Her birthday is December first and I’m already stretched. I’m sorry if y’all feel like I’m abusing my card but all she wants is a hello kitty birthday cake. I am not a great baker… So I was planning on getting her one from a bakery. This post actually made me tear up. Y’all must be in good standings. I’m sorry that I’m just trying to do the best I can for my daughter.
Ok I feel this is very ignorant cause their is A LOT OF PEPOLE out their with part time jobs that are on welfare. And I feel you have nothing else to do with your life but to write a whole page and complain about something if you really some something to be taken care of you can actually write a letter to congress .etc cause writing on the internet is not going to put you anywhere. What our country should do is drug test everyone on welfare and cut the one who come out dirty wich would probally be a lot of pepole . And I have no clue what is wrong with someone purchasing a 45 dollar cake I mean at least they are doing something good with it and not bad. So get offline and stop taking up space
I don’t have a problem with it because on the other side of things those toys u buy children for your children, clothes, or anything else material that may be purchase you can’t get on ebt so what’s wrong with a nice cake
I have EBT and I really dont see anything wrong with it. If you are so quick to judge shame on you. Dont forget there are people who have good paying jobs, and cheat the system to get the food stamps, those are the people you should be disgusted by. NOT the ones who actually NEED them.
What concerns me when I read these types of comments everywhere is why the hell are you paying attention to what the person in front of you is buying and how they are paying for it? You are too nosy. And how dare the cashier discuss the other customers personal business with you?!? I work full-time and pay taxes, but I am not concerned about some little kid getting a birthday cake with his/her mom’s food stamps. I don’t think just because someone has food stamps they should have to make everything from scratch. Now focus on your own life & you might be happier instead of such a nagging beotch.
Look im a single mother of 4. and well i use my ebt card for each and everyone of there BIRTHDAY CAKES! sometimes us single parents or parents in general are not able to afford to get them anything at all for their birthdays but a cake. so to be honest the 45.00cake does make them happy cuz their eyes light up with excitement. And to be honest if you had kids you would understand that sparkle of seeing your kids be happy gives you everything. Now im a mother that will do just about everything possible for my kids. understand that god has everyone going through their own storm for his reasoning. so just remember the verse that says dont cast a stone at anyone for sin if you cant cast one to ur self first. So before you pass judgement on something you know so little about make sure your own closet is clean before u talk about someone elses. And i work a full time job myself. I still get foodstamps cuz life alone hasnt been as easy as others. so im just gonna pray and ask god to forgive you and your passment of judgement towards others. god bless you!
What an uneducated and hurtful blog post. I live in Florida and I receive both SNAP and Cash Assistance. I get the maximum amount for both, for me and my child: which is 365 in SNAP and 241 in Cash Assistance. I live with relatives and coupon and save money as much as I can to help out. As soon as I start working, I’ll lose my cash assistance, before I even get my first paycheck, and if I make over 1100 a month (which would NOT cover rent, utilities, a phone, the internet [which is a necessity in this day and age, no matter what government programs say], childcare and food) I lose ALL of my assistance, food, cash and help with childcare. If someone wants to use part of their SNAP to buy their child a cake, that’s THEIR business. I will be making my daughter’s first birthday cake because I am extremely frugal and the 365 a month is our entire food budget, but shame on you for advocating to take away what could be a child’s only luxury on their birthday! No one who receives food stamps or cash assistance is spending it on cigarettes, alcohol and 45 dollar birthday cakes, at least in Florida! And most people who receive food stamps are not eating an entirely healthy diet, my family only eats healthy because of my frugality, and the government doesn’t realize that for a lot of people who receive SNAP, it is their entire food budget for the month. Do the damn math. That one person may have been a scammer. Or she may have had a really good month couponing and saving as much money as she could and decided to splurge a little for herself or a member of her family. And BY THE WAY, WalMart doesn’t hire ‘professional bakers’. They hire average people and train them. Professional, independent bakeries do not accept SNAP.
i have food stamps and i cannot afford the best for my children so to be able to get a big really cool cake in his eyes for my sons birthday would at least make me feel better and i would rather have the extra help then let my children starve because i cant work enough hours to make up enough money to afford the all the extras!!!!
I get what u’re saying, but since you can’t afford a damn cake maybe you should try to sign up for food stamps yourself. The thing that you haven’t realized is that just because you’re eligible for foodstamps DOES NOT mean you don’t work/taxpayer. If you’re 18yrs and come from a wealthy family and you get pregnant heck you are eligible. You may not necessarily NEED THEM but you are eligible. Your expectation of a person on foodstamps is one who looks like they should be on feed the children, but in reality that’s just not the case. And if you’re just an average person with no degree or any title by your name working a job that ANYBODY can get you should shut up. God forbid the company closed their doors or you get injured and your not about to perform that job that may have paid you well. Because if that happens you will be in that same line with that same damn card and if it was your child’s birthday and they wanted the cake and your snap balance was enough you’d be a damn fool to sit there and say well this isnt my money these are the tax payers money and wouldnt appreciate me buying you a cake. Get real! It’s a very small portion of tax dollars that actually go towards social services anyway!
Its not about the price of the cake its the fact that maybe they can’t buy there kid a nice gift the least they can do is get a nice cake for the poor kid. I think there are haters everywhere and i under stand that people work hard but in the end a child is so happy because they git the cake thy wanted. As for drinking that disgusting they should not happen at all i think that is crazy but what can we do they is untied state and we need to work together to make it work for everyone
Its my daughters first birthday and I am getting her a custom cake and paying with food stamps and am not ashamed or feel bad about tax payers paying for it. I was a tax payer now I’m a stay at home mom with some financial issues. My husband is a veteran and fought and protected our country so I do not feel bad about this at all. Some people need help every once in a while, and for you people without kids don’t talk until you are in the position of not being able to afford a decent birthday cake. Growing up I would have done anything to have that “cool” cake. My daughter will look back and love her cake. You all that are talking bad about this make me sad.
I have worked from the time i was old enough to work. My Father died at 61 they started his social security at 57. Worked his butt off all of my life. He died at 61. He even got an honor from Military. The man was a hard worker!!! Some of you that are saying those on welfare are taking your Money? Well why don’t you take them in and give them support and nourish them back to success. Be the oh might person you claim to be. The Christian..Because your too self centered and worried about you…It’s a blessing that you have a good job and you don’t have any problems….I don’t wish you any problems. But, from an experience that I never dreamed of and I am an educated person…This is Nov. 2013. I had to file for the food stamp program. I could write a book about the hell I have endured for the last 8 months. All of you deserve your opinions. But you need to really break down what you say about people…I said I never ever ever ever ever would accept/take charity. Our family was the ones for the last 8+ years donating to our church and taking food baskets to people in need. You best humble yourself or something could easily put you in that position within where some of us have at this moment. Your health can put you down in a matter of seconds. Your spouse could walk out on you for no reason at all after 19 years and three kids. I’ve heard these story’s. But you know what? Now ? I am one of the stories. May you have a wonderful day be blessed with everything you need and deserve. I’ve never been without a job for more then 2 or 3 days. It’s tough and it’s going to get tougher..Mark my words today!!!!! I didn’t post this to offend anyone’s remarks or argue about the issue. It’s merely a comment and this is probably the second one I have ever posted in my life. Don’t judge the unknown. But the point is correct. A $45.00 cake or wedding cake someone should of ask the cashier to print out a copy of their receipt so you could report them. I am a bold person who would ask for a copy of their receipt. lolololol Probably wouldn’t get it but. If someone was with me I’d follow them to their car and get license plate number. lolol
Wow!!! Look and listen to you low life people. All because we get foodstamps doesn’t mean our kids don’t deserve a damn good cake every once in a while. They don’t get much but this past year was a once time thing. All four of our children got to pick out a $50 signature cake of there choice. We couldn’t afford all fancy/expensive party supplies. So I believed they deserved it! Doesn’t mean were any less of a parent. In fact me and my husband might have to skip a meal or two to cover the cost of it as long as my kids have a nice hot meal on the table. All bc we get foodstamps doesn’t make us any less of a person and you more of a person. Grow up & get a life!!
This is hilarious. I’m going to go buy a 347 dollar cake for my daughter’s first birthday with my SNAP benefits just to piss off all the “taxpayers”. BRB 🙂 Oh and thank you ALL for the money for the beautiful cake that she won’t remember.
for one you don’t know the situation of the person using the ebt card I been on both sides of that card I’ve worked ever since I was a teen and in ’08 I was laid off and could not find work at all for almost 2 years it took me about a year of not working to finally apply for the foodstamps and was embarrassed by even having to do so and luckily I was able to get my old job back in ’10 and get my life back in order I don’t use drugs or drink which most people who don’t know anything tend to think people who use the ebt card do before I had to ever use the ebt card my ignorance used to get the best of me and judge those people too but being there in that situation and having to use foodstamps at one point in my life I learned my lesson and don’t judge anymore by the way foodstamps and cash aid is not enough to live off of so theres no happy times using them only stressful times
people Like you make me so mad! Did u ever think maybe that family couldn’t afford a party for their child. maybe all they could do was the cake. Or maybe they love their child so much that they wanted to show him/her how special they are on their day. It’s not about a cake it’s about trying to give your child that one day because the other 364 days a year u say no to things they want because you can’t afford it. You say sorry for not being able to get the shoes they really wanted or even needed but yet you work your ass off miss time with your kids. Work 3 jobs to try to give them everything they NEED. How dare you judge Someone you don’t know. shame on you. I’m ok with my taxes going to buy a cake for a child of a low income Family. I hope that cake was awesome And that child remembers It like I’m sure he/she will.
Both my family and my mom are on foodstamps. My husband can not work due to his autism and overwhelming anxiety. My son was born with an extremely rare birth defect, and has been on SSI since he was about a year old. Due to trying to care for both my son and my husband, I cannot hold down a job. I lost the last one I had due to my husband having to be rushed to the hospital because he tried to hack through his arm with a dull kitchen knife, and my boss was pissed off because she had to come in and cover my shift, I gave her plenty of warning, I explained the gravity of the situation, I had notes from his therapist and the doctors he saw in the E.R. ( let me also state that this was the inciting incident that had us back and forth at the hospital for four days, culminating in a three day hospitalization for him). I got fired and denied unemployment all because of this. So, though I would love to be able to work, I cannot. Is it really such a terrible thing that once a year, we buy my son a cake for his birthday? He doesn’t get a lot in the way of luxuries, because we are extremely poor and almost all of his monthly check goes to keep a roof over our heads, and our utilities kept on. Yes, I am ashamed that I can’t work so that I can provide that for him myself. But I think, in the long run, my attention to him and his father in their times of extreme need is very important. I know some people would like to blame me for mooching off of the system, saying no one asked me to have a special needs child, or an autistic husband. I didn’t ask for any of that either, but I am doing the best I can. And for a long, long time, I was the one that was working and paying for other people to take advantage of the resources that we so desperately need now. None of the money is spent on anything that is not absolutely neccessary, except that overpriced birthday cake he gets once a year. So, until you’ve been in my situation, and have had to make the choices that I live with every day, don’t give me grief for something as simple as a birthday cake. There are some people who abuse the system, but we are definitely not those people. We had to jump through immeasurable hoops to get everything that we have. I find it amazing that there are so many people out there that are able to take advantage of this, because from my experience, getting this assistance has been one of the most difficult things that I have ever accomplished. And I came from a dirt poor childhood and still managed to work my ass off and get into (and attend) a prestigious, private university that only accepts the best and brightest. Just because you are told by mainstream media that everyone on government assistance is just lazy and worthless doesn’t mean you have to believe it. There are people out there that legitimately need help, and the last thing they need is a bunch of brainwashed idiots assuming the worst about them.
Obviously you have never personally needed government assistance or known anyone that has. Not every person receiving assistance is unemployed. So therefore their tax dollars also go towards the purchases they make with their EBT card. Maybe they couldn’t afford a gift for their child because they had bills to pay so they purchased the “huge ass fancy” birthday cake with the EBT card because that would make their child happy. People are too quick to judge others without knowing anything about their lives. But you know the saying “ignorance is bliss”.