Roughly 40 million Americans are on “Food Stamps”

I just want to throw some numbers out there to put Covid-19 crisis into perspective.

Roughly 40 million (out of 330 million) Americans are on “Food Stamps” or SNAP.
Source: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supp...stance_Program
https://www.usatoday.com/story/money...amps/37017367/
https://www.worldometers.info/world-...us-population/

Food stamps is roughly 4% of Walmarts’ sales:
“ And SNAP customers are important to big firms’ bottom lines. Walmart derives about 4 percent of its U.S. sales from food stamp purchases, according to UBS Analyst Michael Lasser – though Walmart has neither confirmed nor denied that figure.”
Source: https://www.pymnts.com/news/retail/2...amps-snap/amp/

The general rule is: If you don’t know the answer, choose the most likely outcome or answer.

So if the question is how many Americans on Food Stamps are buying food on the 1st to the 4th of the month, you now have numbers to work with to see this train wreck coming.

There are two sides to the equation: people with money to buy food and food on the shelves in supermarkets. The US gov’t is pretty good at getting welfare checks out on the 1st to the 4th so that side of the equation is pretty solid. The wild card or big unknown is the food on the shelves part of the equation.

We “all” can see this coming.

1st two paragraphs:

“SAN FRANCISCO/LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - At 11 p.m. on the last day of the month, shoppers flock to the nearest Walmart. They load their carts with food and household items and wait for the midnight hour. That’s when food stamp credits are loaded on their electronic benefits transfer cards.

Once the clock strikes midnight and EBT cards are charged, you can see our results start to tick up,” says Tom Schoewe, Wal-Mart Stores Inc’s chief financial officer.“

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-u...5BH2C220091218

For California, SNAP is loaded on the first 10 days.
Source: https://fns-prod.azureedge.net/sites...All-States.pdf

How much do people get in SNAP / Food stamps per month?

For California: “As of October 1, 2019, the maximum monthly allotment for a one-person household in California is $194, for a two-person household $355, for a three-person household is $509, for a four-person household is $646, for a five-person household is $768, for a six-person household is $924, for a seven-person household is $1,018, for an eight-person household is $1,164 and add $146 for each additional household member above eight.“

Source: http://calfresh.guide/how-much-in-ca...ts-each-month/

$646 a month for a family of four who are so poor that they need food stamps. That $646 has got to buy a lot of food for the entire month.

Under the old approach (before COVID-19), they show up at say Walmart’s (because anyone can observe this in America), and start loading up their carts. I used the first four days of the month because the lines were so long I won’t be in Walmart.

Under the new regime (COVID-19), you have reduced hours, food not staying on shelves DESPITE multiple daily shipments at Walmart, we still got panic buying and hoarding (as if preparing for a nuclear winter), and you now add (typically) moms with money in their EBT accounts and no food they can buy. Recall, the cheapest stables are being bought and stockpiled everyday by people waiting hours before a store opens AND DESPITE RATIONING at some supermarkets. Those EBT accounts has to buy the most food so they can last the month for the family. The shelves are empty. For many unlucky customers, there’s nothing to buy. Some of us can afford steak, but these people need cheap stables.

I like using WinCo Foods as an example because they are low priced and only accept cash or debit cards, e.g. you cannot borrow from your credit card to buy food here. WinCo employees are telling me at numerous stores, the food is coming in every day but the stables ARE UNABLE to remain on the shelves throughout the day. People are lining up SEVERAL HOURS before the store opens up and it’s first come, first served. And WinCo does ration certain items to help prevent hoarding.

The “ingredients” for a perfect storm are clearly visible. Please don’t say you never saw this coming. The law of unintended consequences is a real BITCH.