Single mothers, emergency food assistance, and food stamps in the welfare reform era

This article documents the characteristics, circumstances, and factors linked to concurrent use of food stamps among single-mother food pantry clients in Wisconsin in 1999. Most of these mothers use food pantries as an alternative, rather than a supplement, to food stamps, despite appearing to meet food stamp income criteria. Concurrent food stamp use is more common among mothers with weaker employment ties, more recent welfare involvement, and residence in a county that experienced smaller food stamp caseload declines in the welfare reform years.