David G. Greenfield, a leading candidate for the New York City Council, announced today that he is currently spending one week on a “kosher food stamp diet” in order to call attention to what he calls “the inability for families to feed their children on food-stamps.” Greenfield cited the extraordinary difficulties which Orthodox Jewish families who utilize food stamps face due to the rising costs of kosher food. The cost of kosher food for many items is 20% – 100% higher than non-kosher foods. Greenfield, who is running with the support of Councilman Simcha Felder to fill Felder’s term-limited seat, purchased one-weeks worth of food from Friedman’s Kosher Supermarket in Boro Park within the $25 weekly monetary constraints set forth for food stamp recipients. B’ezras Hashem, Greenfield plans on eating only the $25 worth of groceries for the week.
According to the New York State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance, the agency charged with oversight of support programs and economic assistance for low-income New Yorkers, the average household food stamp allocation for a family of four in New York City is $214 per month. The more than 1.8 million New Yorkers on food stamps receive an average of $107 a month in assistance, which is slightly higher than the average allotment for the rest of the country. That comes to $24.69 per person per week, which is just over one dollar per meal.
Greenfield noted that skyrocketing food costs have only exacerbated the problem. In the past year alone, the cost of food for what the government considers a minimum nutritional diet has risen 7.2% nationwide. It is on track to become the largest increase in nearly twenty years, according to the most recent data from the United States Department of Agriculture. In addition, the prices of certain staples have risen even more. For example, the cost of eggs has increased nearly 20%, and the price of cholov yisroel milk and glatt kosher meat has gone up by 35%. Greenfield noted that because of the high cost, he was not able to afford either meat or dairy products within his $25 weekly grocery allotment.
“The drastic rise in food costs have caused a bad situation to become even worse,” said Greenfield, “people in our community who have struggled to feed their families using food stamps are finding that the challenge has now become virtually impossible. What’s more, families who were able to survive without food stamps are simply no longer able to do so.”
When it comes to food stamp eligibility in New York City, the threshold for a family of six (two adults and four children) is an approximate monthly income of only $2,904. In order for an individual, such as a widowed senior, to be eligible for food stamps, their gross monthly income cannot exceed $1,107. Greenfield noted that according to a recent survey by the UJA Federation nearly one-third of Jewish households in New York City were earning under $35,000 a year.
Greenfield called for a fifty percent increase in the monthly food stamp allocation and in food stamp eligibility levels in order to ensure that more people in need could benefit from the food stamp program and purchase an adequate supply of food. The Council candidate cited the increase in the cost of living and the rising prices of items that he called “the bare essentials” as the primary reasons for his call to action. He was also inspired by a similar non-kosher diet that Councilman Eric Gioia went on last year to raise awareness of this issue.
“Government needs to do more to provide real relief to real families,” said Greenfield. “As the number of people who are struggling to feed their families continues to grow at an alarming rate, the government needs to lend a helping hand and prevent this issue from becoming a widespread crisis.”
Greenfield noted that there is no shame in food stamps. In fact over 1,000,000 households in New York State utilize food stamps, which is the highest enrollment that the state has seen since 1995. Over the past year alone, 55,000 new households in New York enrolled in the food stamps program, a total of approximately 103,000 people. Greenfield encouraged those who believe they are eligible for food stamps to apply by calling 311.
“Hunger knows no geographic or ethnic boundaries, and it affects every community throughout the state, including the Orthodox Jewish community,” said Greenfield, “This is an issue that must be highlighted and spoken about so that people understand the magnitude and widespread nature of the problem.”
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21 Responses
go greenfeild go!!!! Keep Up the good work you have my vote.
bec. they all work for cash
Why are people who own beautiful homes on fodstamps anyway?
My mother in BP works two jobs and pay taxes to support these people that live on the same block and cheat the system.
That is not fair. I remember growing up we had to split a chicken for 4 people for Shabbat in order to afford living in BP and for us to go to yeshivah. Now days people are buying nosh,Israeli pudding and imported icecream ,steak and even hamantashen for Purim with the Benifit card.
What happened to Jewish honesty/pride and getting a job to support a family?
I never understood this food stamps thing. Perhaps that is because my family worked their whole lives. Social services are for the truly needy; not those shuckling around with no occupations.
My late maternal grandmother A”H, who survived Hungary and the Shoa, was too embarassed to ask for assitance in her later years. After coming to America she and my grandfather ran a business where hiding cash was easy. They would never do that because they were thankful each day of the US.
Why did she refuse to take assistance in her later years when she could have legitimately qualified for it? It was, as she said in her broken Hungarian-English, for people who R’L who could not afford things. The Ribono Shel Olam gave me a brain, limbs, a desire to work, and an obligation to provide for my family – especially when my husband was niftar at an early age.
We have a mitzvah of piru u’rivu, but we also have an obligation to take of our families. Don’t most ketubahs require that the husband provide for his wife? This is a contract.
#2 straightshooter
Not everyone is working for cash – unfortunately there are MANY Jewish families living below the poverty level.
One has to wonder however how many food stamps are going to families where the husband learns all day rather than earn a living. If this is your lifestyle choice, it is fair to blame the government when you can’t afford to buy cholov yisroel milk?
Kudos for Greenfield for always taking a stand for what’s right!
It’s about time we had some people running from our community who are actually committed to community ideals, rather than the same old useless politics.
Food stamps are made to supplement income and help with the purchasing of food stuffs, food stamps are not meant to be the sole means of purchasing ones groceries.
I don’t understand the theatrics of this candidate.
#4,
I was disappointed to see you comment about those “shukling around without an occupation” refering to kollel yungeleit.
As if the few hundred bnai Torah being moser nefesh are the major problem facing the future of klal yisroel.
I used to deliver for tomchei shabbos on thusday evenings and before pesach. Most of the recipients were hard working yidden who couldn’t make ends meet. With the cost of tuition food and energy spiraling out of control people are choking – working people. I remember when they had a waiting list!
Our chavrei hakollel deserve our moral and financial support. Are there corrupt ones? Of course! Just like there are corrupt doctors lawyers accountants and contractors. That dosen’t corrupt all them.
May we be zoche to ki im leyudecha hamelaiah….
I know this sounds sacreligous but why should the govt have to give you a bigger handout just because you eat kosher and you feel the NEED to buy the MORE HEIMISH products on the shelves than the NORMAL products which are also kosher.
Food Stamps is not what you live on, its called ASSISTANCE.
to #3 & #4, I personally know MANY families where the father works and does NOT earn enough to put bread on the table. Are you living in dreamland that you think everyone who works earns enough to afford life? Anyway I have worked for the past thirty years and we also split a chicken for 4 pple. That’s a quarter of a chicken for ea. person, what’s the problem w/that? Principal
Theatrics or not, he’s making a good point that no one else seems to be making, and he’s taking a stand on behalf of people who don’t have a voice.
It’s not the government’s responsibility to support Kollel Yungerleit, it’s OUR communal responsibility. And it’s not the government’s issue if kosher food prices are too high, it’s OUR issue. Where are the Rabbanim/askanim looking into kosher food price gouging? You think it’s bad now, just wait until yomtov! Only one pizza store lowered its prices when the price of flour went back down. That means all the others are taking advantage of the community. Kosher establishments should lose their hashgacha if their prices are unfair.
According to the Jewish Week, several of the major glatt kosher producers (including Rubashkin) have been hit recently with a federal antitrust subpoena for “price fixing,” which is an illegal way to make more money off your product by having the heads of these companies get together to charge the same high price, rather than have the price be lowered naturally by competition. Competition is what brings prices down, and price fixing, which is what they are accused of, is what keeps prices higher than they need to be based on the cost of production.
In other words, they are stealing meat and chicken out of my children’s mouths so they can get richer. They got together and decided to make more money, while my family suffers. Well, it’s illegal, and now they’re hopefully being taken to task for it. I hope that the federal government will solve the problem so prices can come down, and more frum families who struggle to feed their families can get the food they need.
It’s really sad that it takes the secular government to step in and see that we get fair prices and can afford to feed our growing children. Even if a family gets food stamps, their food stamps will but them much more food if the prices came down. Why should families struggle to eat, when the prices could come down to normal and the same few dollars could buy so much more?
“Kosher establishments should lose their hashgacha if their prices are unfair.” -geshicked
geshicked, I agree with you! The problem is, the Rav giving the hashgacha also wants to get rich. It isn’t in their interest to lower prices either.
Bas Torah,
The semiJewish week is not a place to quote from or for someone with half a brain to even read. They are extremly anti torah is drips from their stories.
Companies are allowed to make money legally as they generaly REINVEST it back into the business. The Obamanation is running taxing the oil companies on their profits. For what reason?! Because he thinks they are making too much money. That would be called socialism not NOT capitalism.
There was no subpeona at Agriprossing that I know of (no one was able to confirm it) unless it was in the minds of the unions who are interesting in killing the non union company.
Oh and other thing, being served with a subpeona DOES NOT MAKE YOU AUTOMATICLY GUILTY!!
If you were a true Bas Torah you would not beleive the loshon hora and you for sure would not wish bad on a yid. If Rubashkin CH”V goes kaput, you will see meat/poultry prices go sky high or higher. They, after all, supply about 85% of the market.
If you skip meat and cheese, kosher food is not radically more expensive. Until recently, most Jews got along fine without fleishigs except on Shabbos , and without the fancy and expensive cheese.
Of course, attempting to live off food stamps is very difficult for non-Jews.
Don’t understand the issue.
It pays for bread, water and salt. Eggs for protein. Potatoes or pasta for carbs.
What else does a family with major chovos or one in Kollel NEED? Back in the Alter Heim, this would be a luxury!
Fruits & Veggies are a different program, I think.(not that they had those!)
B”H for MOFES!
jphone, I will answer your question. In New York State, there is a maximum that can be charged per gallon of milk. This law is intended to ensure that milk is affordable for all families, so no child should be deprived of calcium, etc. However, the price cap only applies to gallon-sized bottled, such as you see in supermarkets. Smaller size containers, as you usually find in convenience stores, can be sold for a higher price.
In other words, they don’t want to be limited in what they can charge for cholov yisroel.
P.S. It does NOT cost 50% more to produce cholov yisroel milk, despite the 50% markup in price.
According to the articel, Mr. Greenfield will be buying all of his groceries at the kosher supermarket for the “food stamp challenge”. Do people generally buy all of their groceries at the “Kosher” food store?
I live outside of NYC in a large Jewish community. The grocery stores in my area tend to have lower prices on bread, fruits & produce, dry cereal, etc. than the “kosher” stores; they also have more loss leaders & double manufacturer coupons, so I buy many of my general groceries there. I don’t use food stamps (B”H I don’t qualify for them), and I know it’s not always easy to shop at more than one store, but this can really make a difference.
The above is what I had been told about milk regulations in New York by a lawyer quite a few years ago. IN case regulations have changed, I did more research, and this is what I found:
The current regulation in New York state is that stores can charge a maximum of $2.24 for a half-gallon and $4.37 for a gallon of milk. Twice $2.24 is $4.48, which is higher than the gallon price.
The cholov yisroel companies still charge more. Do they get some kind of waiver because their costs are (slightly) higher? I don’t know. Even if they do, cholov yisroel is still quite overpriced.
Could David Greenfield try living on my middle class income as well? We’re middle class, 2 incomes, drowning in tuition, health insurance, rent & gas expenses. I’d love to have those freebie medicaid & food stamps as well.