Rural residents more likely to be on food stamps; rural rates higher for children, seniors

From 2008 to 2012, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits, also known as food stamps, went to 14.6 percent of rural households, compared to 10.9 percent of urban households, says the Center for Rural Affairs in a report released on Wednesday. Nationwide, 11.4 percent of households received SNAP benefits, and about 86 percent of eligible rural residents receive food stamps—compared to about 73 percent of rural ones.

Rural areas also had a highest percentage of children and seniors receiving benefits, the report says. Combining rural areas and small micropolitan areas, 3.6 percent of seniors 60 or older received benefits, and 7.5 percent of households with children under 18 received benefits—compared to 2.8 percent of metro areas with seniors 60 or older and 6.2 percent of households with children under 18. The national average was 2.9 percent of seniors 60 or older receiving benefits and 6.4 percent of households with children under 18. (Center for Rural Affairs graphic)

"Ultimately, the rural-urban SNAP participation rate gap is a reflection on the rural economy in recent years," the report says. "Rural areas of the nation have generally lower incomes than do urban areas, and rural areas also generally have higher poverty levels. These economic facts and the effects of the Great Recession made more rural people more reliant on programs such as SNAP, particularly, as the data outlined above show, those households with older and younger vulnerable members." (Read more)