Watch Food Stamped

Food Stamped is a documentary film from 2010 that takes a critical look at the food stamp program in the United States. The film pairs its co-directors Shira and Yoav Potash with Healthy Emmie, a health and wellness blogger, as they attempt to live on a food stamp budget for one week. The film opens with a brief history of food stamps, which were established in the 1930s as a way to assist farmers and provide food for the poor. It then goes on to explain how the food stamp program has evolved over time, particularly in the 2000s when the program was rebranded as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and made electronic.

From here, the film follows the Potashes and Emmie as they try to navigate the food stamp program. They are given a budget of $1 per meal per person, which they soon find is very difficult to stick to. They visit a grocery store to see what kind of food they can afford on their budget, and are shocked to find that healthy and fresh foods are often much more expensive than processed and junk foods. They must make tough decisions about what to buy and how much, and ultimately end up eating a lot of cheap, unhealthy food that they would not normally eat.

Throughout the film, various experts and scholars offer their insights on the food stamp program. They explain how the program is structured and its impact on the health and well-being of Americans living in poverty. They discuss the role of government subsidies in food production, and how this leads to a system that favors unhealthy, processed foods over fresh fruits and vegetables.

One of the key arguments made in the film is that the food stamp program perpetuates a cycle of poverty and poor health. Many people who rely on food stamps do not have access to healthy food options or the knowledge of how to cook healthy meals. As a result, they often rely on fast food or junk food, which can lead to long-term health problems like obesity and diabetes.

Another argument made in the film is that the way the food stamp program is structured is unfair. The film argues that the amount of money provided by the program is not enough to sustain healthy eating habits, and that people living in poverty should not have to choose between buying healthy food and paying for other necessities like rent and utilities.

Overall, Food Stamped is a sobering look at the challenges faced by those living on a food stamp budget. It highlights the need for reform of the food stamp program to ensure that all Americans have access to healthy and affordable food options.

Food Stamped is a 2010 documentary with a runtime of 1 hour. It has received mostly positive reviews from critics and viewers, who have given it an IMDb score of 6.5.