Food stamps still popular with poor

Low-income households generally have two avenues by which they can receive nutritional assistance--the Federal Food Stamp program and private efforts such as food pantries. However, a study conducted at the University of Missouri-Columbia, by Jane Mosley, an assistant research professor in the Truman School of Public Affairs, along with Laura Tiehen from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Economic Research Service, reveals that while many eligible families actively use these options, very few take advantage of both simultaneously.

"We find that food stamp use is much more common than the use of food pantries," Mosley observes. "Over four times as many households used food stamps as used food pantries in a given month."

Further, the study shows that less than 10% of food stamp recipients use a food pantry in the same month they receive food stamps. This is striking, Mosley notes, and implies that while many households use both forms, very few use pantries to supplement their stamp benefits in the months that they receive them.

"Our findings suggest that the most economically vulnerable households were more likely to rely on both forms of food assistance, though rarely simultaneously," Mosley concludes. Moreover, food stamp recipients tend to receive benefits for much longer periods of time than private assistance.

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