A new report from the Congressional Research Service shows just how much — or how little — of Obama's new $825 billion economic stimulus package is going towards agriculture and food programs.
$27 billion is slated for food-related issues, with the vast majority — $21 billion — going to bolster the nation's food assistance programs, like food stamps, WIC and some school meals. In 2008, food stamp program (SNAP) costs rose nearly $4.5 billion to $37.655 billion. More than 28 million took advantage of SNAP last year, the largest number of participants since its inception. Considering the state of the economy, that upward trend looks like it'll be getting worse this year.
Here in Florida,
