I was on food stamps (SNAP) for several years. Yup, I bought pop. Way cheaper than anything healthier.
It’s lovely to listen to people tell “us” what we’re doing wrong but then those people don’t lift a finger to try and change our reality- of “real” food being way more expensive than junk.
Much easier to just wag their finger at us and try and take away one of our lifelines.
Do any of you know what a “food desert” is? I would live in one, if we didn’t have a car. The closest store to us is a little corner store with no fresh produce, no fresh meat, and astronomical prices on everything. But right across the street is a low-income housing complex, so guess who shops there and buys the stuff some of you don’t consider food? The next closest store-a LONG walk, or a bus ride with a slightly shorter walk, is a 7-11. I think they carry a few pieces of stale, fresh fruit, a banana or two and some apples. Guess what is next to THAT? Yup, more low-income housing.
Two minutes away by car only-not on a bus route from my house, but on a different route that helps some, is a “Grocery Outlet” that carries many locally raised, organic, whole grain options for food. It’s ALWAYS busy and the primary shoppers are low-income families. People WANT to eat better, but it’s not always possible. And while yes, we have buses (I live in a strange mix of middle, upper and low income homes), they don’t always get you where you need to go to make that happen.
As for water being free, ha ha, yes, unless the landlord doesn’t pay the water bill, like what happened with a family I’ve helped, or if the plumbing fails and the landlord won’t fix it-same family-we got a plumber friend to fix it. And walking is also free-you’d be surprised at how much walking low-income people with no cars have to walk to and from bus stops or to stores/work, or do hard physical work AT work.
It’s often about the food. Farmer’s markets taking EBT cards aren’t much help when the nearest one is 2 buses and 45 minutes away and you’re working two jobs. It’s a lot easier to go across the street and get a few frozen burritos. Or maybe you’ve got a 25 pound bag of rice an some chicken from when you got a ride to the real grocery store, but you couldn’t afford the power bill so you can’t cook it. I personally know people in these situations and trust me, soda isn’t the problem. It’s hard to understand when it’s not a lifestyle you’ve ever personally encountered, even in your volunteer work, but food challenges are a huge problem, even in America, even in big cities, even with Food Stamps.
“Way cheaper than anything healthier.”
Tap water. A pitcher of iced tea or iced coffee.
Soda pop may be tasty and people may want it but it is not food. Wine is tasty and red wine is healthy in small amounts, but food stamps don’t pay for it. If EBT didn’t permit soda to be purchased with food stamps, the food stamp users would have more food stamps for actual food with nutritional value.
Tap water varies in quality depending on the region and the conscientiousness of local/state governments. It’s not universally even within the states as safe/palatable as in your area or mine.
Just look at what happened with Flint, Michigan due to actions/inactions on the part of the state and local governments.
I think that’s a huge reach. Tap water is safe. The Flint tragedy was an outlier. Many more people have been harmed by the overconsumption of sugar than lead poisoning, it’s safe to say.
https://www.valuepenguin.com/how-much-we-spend-food
Looks like the average family is spending 6% on their beverages. So 4% more can certainly be explained by store prices.
Tap water is safe, but poor people like to have things other than water, too 
And the water in some places, like where my parents live, won’t kill you but it is disgusting. It tastes like rust. The city keeps saying they’re going to bring city water in but they still haven’t.
The folks at Flint, Michigan blithely assumed with the connivance of state/local government officials* the until they found otherwise through symptoms such as falling hair and illnesses.
Moreover, if this perception wasn’t widespread beyond towns/regions known for pollutants/issues with their tap waters, why are folks…especially upper/upper-middle class folks…even in areas with great tap water buying gallons of bottled water when it is actually regulated less stringently than tap water?
Because this is America, and if you want to pollute the planet with tons of plastic bottles, you have that ability. That doesn’t mean that water in plastic bottles is healthier or better than tap water.
Drinking tap water doesn’t mean you’re poor or stupid. It just means you know how to make good choices for your body, not waste money, or ruin the planet.
Let’s face it-soda is a bad habit, one in which none of us should be indulging.
That said, is there anyone among us who doesn’t have any bad habits?
Poor people tend to have inexpensive bad habits, like watching too much TV and drinking soda. Rich people tend to have more expensive bad habits like eating too much red meat or being profligate in their energy consumption.
Someone making a good living working a single job and with support at home can afford to drive to the local Whole Foods or health food store and buy expensive fruits and veggies, fish, kombucha, coconut water and other pricey items, then head off for a run or swim or to a yoga or spin class, then get a full night’s sleep.
Someone under stress and working two jobs is likely to eat high sugar low nutritional value foods because they’re cheap to buy, offer a lot a quick energy when you’re exhausted, and require little preparation. A chicken sandwich, fries and a soda off the McDonald’s dollar meal can cost less than a chicken breast, broccoli, potatoes and milk prepared at home. It’s a bad choice but one I can understand.
@Sue22 I agree with you completely. I was on food stamps for a short time period (probably about 6 months) many years ago, but our groceries budget was actually even lower during the following years. I remember that Stella D’oro cookies and donuts was our preferred junk food - a family pack was 89 cents and it lasted 2-3 days. So I can definitely relate. What I found striking is that I could not afford to spend 20% of our budget on junk, we could barely buy the basics (like milk, eggs and cereal). If I could spend more on junk, I probably would (though definitely not on soda - I always found it disgusting). But I would buy seltzer if I could.
Maybe they should do partial SNAP, Partial WIC? Only good for dairy?
I don’t know. These folks have it hard enough. I figure they don’t need me to tell them they shouldn’t waste stamps on chips or sofa…
Berkeley and San Francisco (I think) have slapped a tax on sugary sodas to discourage their consumption, like the taxes on cigarettes. More poor people smoke than rich.
The desire that some people have to further punish the poor is sickening.
Philadelphia taxes sugary drinks also.
http://www.philly.com/philly/infographics/383217911.html
I don’t think the motivation is to ‘punish’ the poor. Like cigarette taxes, the hope is to lower consumption and improve health.
Interesting: Philadelphia’s tax applies to “artificial sugar substitutes” like stevia as well. Curious about the reasoning behind that–there are no reliable health concerns about stevia, @TatinG
There is a growing body of research supporting the idea that “calorie-free” sugar substitutes that create a feeling of sweetness make folks crave more calories…
What HRSMom said.
We were on WIC when I was younger and probably would benefit from food stamps now.
Unhealthy foods fill you up quicker (and more importantly longer) than anything else. If it’s one of those days where I’m only getting one meal, something unhealthy like a pizza will keep me full longer than a similarly-priced and smaller salad.
You get more food at a cheaper price if you’re willing to sacrifice your health. Some of this can be explained by poor education, but not all. I remember this comedian joking about how even though he was able to make his way out of the hood, he still had cravings for crappy hood food. We eat what we’re already used to. If you grow up eating junk, you’ll most likely die eating it too. Kids are only initially exposed to what their parents choose (and can afford) to eat, so poor eating habits immediately shape the next generation.
Have you ever noticed how Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Fanta, and Sprite commercials are often (explicitly) targeted at certain minorities? There’s a long history behind the practice. McDonald’s does it occasionally too.
@BunsenBurner - then what about the fact that the Philly tax makes an exemption for drinks that have a certain percentage of fruit in them, even when they have extreme amounts of sugar?
This page brings out some stark contradictions:
http://www.philly.com/philly/infographics/383217911.html
Marvin, as we know, legislators are not scientists (nor do they always base their decisions on rational stuff) I am just saying that calorie-free drinks may trigger overeating, so stevia may be just as bad as the “artificial” stuff and sugar.