West Virginia Public Broadcasting – More than 12 percent of Americans, or 42 million people, need help getting enough food to eat.
Listen to the full Us & Them podcast episode.
In West Virginia, that number is about 18 percent. That help comes from a federal program called SNAP — the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly called food stamps. The Mountain State is one of the top recipients of SNAP benefits — nearly 45 percent are older adults or families with someone who’s disabled, while nearly 60 percent are families with children.
The government’s food support program actually has its roots in McDowell County, West Virginia where it began as a pilot project in the 1960s. Since then the program has reduced poverty and hunger across the nation. Today, SNAP gets caught up in political debates and election cycles.
