The number of Americans signing up for food stamps jumped more than 1 million for Aug. and Sept. of this year, says the latest report issued by the US Department of Agriculture. That brought the total number using the program to just under 48 million.
The US added only 340,000 jobs over the same two months, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data.
At this rate of growth, some analysts are predicting more than 50 million Americans will be on the Supplemental Nutrient Assistance Program, as the food-stamp benefit is now called. And that is in addition to the 3.2 million Americans who have filed Social Security disability applications for this year, up 20 percent from the previous high in 2008.
The 3.2 million applicants would join just under 7 million disabled workers and nearly 2 million of their dependents in getting Social Security disability benefits.
It’s clear that many Americans who are disappearing from the unemployment rolls without finding jobs are needing additional safety nets.
Food-stamp purchases as a percentage of overall grocery purchases have reached almost 14 percent, double the 2008 levels.
According to the USDA, in 2011 44.7 million people participated in the program, with benefits climbing to almost $72 billion.