The USDA official in charge of public nutrition told openly skeptical anti-hunger activists that the administration’s proposed Harvest Box of processed and canned food would be a more efficient way to feed poor Americans than food stamps. To an undercurrent of dissent, Brandon Lipps said the boxes of food could be delivered to tens of millions of residences each month “with billion of dollars in savings” compared to current system of food stamp recipients buying groceries from local stores.
“We have to find better and more efficient ways” to run food stamps, formally named the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, said Lipps at the National Anti-Hunger Policy Conference. “There are high-quality foods they will receive in these boxes.”
The White House envisions the Harvest Box will provide half of food stamp benefits to 80 percent of recipient households; the other half would be available on EBT cards, the mode of providing all benefits now. The Harvest Box would contain nonperishable foods, “such as shelf-stable milk, juice, grains, ready to eat cereals, pasta, peanut butter, beans, canned meat, poultry or fish, and canned fruits and vegetables.” The USDA says the program would run “at approximately half the retail cost” and save $129 billion over 10 years.
“Your boos are welcome. So are your good ideas,” said Lipps during a breakfast speech in which he repeatedly said USDA wanted to “dialogue” with anti-hunger groups and to flesh out the Harvest Box plan. An estimated two dozen people walked out of his speech, a small portion of the hundreds of people in attendance. There was loud applause to a question why the administration wanted to deny people the freedom to choose their groceries.
The Harvest Box was a Washington rarity—a surprise. There was no public discussion of the idea ahead of the White House announcement. The USDA provided a broad brush picture of the program and left some details, particularly the delivery system, to states to work out. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue has expanded upon USDA’s initial one-page description by saying recipients might be able to choose among a list of available foods. Lipps took the outline a step further by saying he believed huge savings were possible in a food-delivery program.
Along with the Harvest Box, the administration proposed stricter eligibility rules for food stamps that would reduce enrollment by an estimated 4 million people, or 10 percent. The salient change would strip states of most of their power to provide food stamps to able-bodied adults because of high unemployment or lack of jobs.
Food stamps are the largest U.S. anti-hunger program, costing $70 billion a year. Some 41.7 million people were enrolled at latest count with a monthly benefit that averaged $128 per person. Food stamp enrollment and costs soared along with unemployment following the 2008-09 recession and peaked at 47.6 million people in 2013 at a cost of $80 billion. The White House says enrollment has fallen in step with the U.S. jobless rate so it is looking for ways to shift people into jobs.