Could you survive on just $8 per day without going hungry?
We challenge you to live off of this for a day to a week to gain perspective on what life is like for those on SNAP benefits.
UNO's SNAP Challenge asks you to purchase food using only the amount of money you would be allowed from SNAP benefits, and reflecting as each day passes. The most important component to this challenge is reflection, whether that is talking with friends or coworkers, sharing on social media, or writing in a journal.
Per the Food Research and Action Center's model, the SNAP Challenge provides an opportunity to experience a small portion of the challenges people face while receiving SNAP benefits. Participants must make difficult food shopping choices on a limited budget of $8, the average daily amount. While living on a SNAP budget for up to a week does not come close to the challenges encountered by low-income people, it provides participants with a new perspective and greater understanding as well as the knowledge to better advocate for the program.
Challenge Guidelines
- Decide how many days you will participate. Allocate $8 per day of the challenge. You are allowed to spend up to that amount for as long as you participate in the challenge.
- All food purchased and eaten during your challenge must be included in the total spending, including dining out.
- During the challenge, you should try to eat only the food that you purchased. If you eat food that you already had at home or that was provided to your from others, you must account for it in your budget.
- Take note of your expereinces during the challenge, whether that is a conversation with friends or a coworker, written reflections, sharing on social media, or internal reflection.
Reflection Questions
- What did you eat today? How did your diet different today from your normal diet?
- What choices or trade-offs did you have to make while purchasing food?
Learn more about the SNAP Challenge here!
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is a federally funded program designed to address food insecurity among US citizens and qualified aliens (such as green card holders and refugees) in low income households. You may know SNAP by its former name, "food stamps."
SNAP benefits are disbursed in the form of an Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) card that can be used at grocery stores and some farmer's markets. SNAP benefits can only be used on household food items and excludes prepared and hot foods as well as any non-food items.
According to the U.S. Government Accountability Office, roughly 3.8 million college students experienced food insecurity in 2020. They found that 59% of food-insecure students potentially eligible for SNAP did not receive benefits.
UNO's Student Basic Needs Survey in the fall of 2023 showed __% of students _____.This means the stigma, and other barriers are preventing students from ...
While we encourage particiapnts to complete the challenge to the best of their ability, the true purpose of the challenge is to learn and reflect.
If you did not make your allowance, think about why. What consequences could you face if you were actually on SNAP benefits?
