Last March an Ames couple challenged themselves to eat on $42 a week. That’s about $1 per meal each, less than what they would receive on USDA’s SNAP Thrifty Food Plan. (SNAP, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, was formerly known as the Food Stamp Program. The Thrifty Food Plan is the basis for food stamp allotments.)

The couple provides a diary of the food they bought, the meals they ate, and how they felt. They write that they are now better comparison shoppers and do a better job planning their shopping trips.

I appreciate their empathy for families who face this situation daily. Read their diary at Reflections on Eating the Thrifty Food Plan.

-pointers by Peggy