A new report from the Carsey Institute at the University of New Hampshire shows sharp increases in the number of people participating in the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as the food stamp program. The number of people participating in the SNAP program is up 61 percent since 2007. In 2010, 44 million people received SNAP benefits. Some 12 percent of all households received help from the SNAP program, up from 8 percent of all households in 2007. In 2010, 42 percent of all single mothers participated in the SNAP program.
African Americans make up about 13 percent of the U.S. population but according to the Food and Research Action Center, 22 percent of all participants in the SNAP program are black.
