More military families are using food stamps to purchase basic staples like milk and bread, according to CNN.
Service members and their spouses redeemed almost $104 million worth of food stamps at base commissaries in fiscal year 2013.
The use of food stamps by military families has been on the upswing since 2008. (See graph from the Defense Commissary Agency above.)
One reason may be that more military families were able to qualify for food stamps during the Great Recession, when some states lowered the amount of money a family could earn and still get assistance - as Joyce Raezer, executive director of the National Military Family Association, explained to CNNmoney.com:
"It was easier for some of those families right on the cusp to qualify."
Unemployment and underemployment among military spouses could be another reason for the increase in food stamp usage.
The 2013 Military Spouse Employment report found that service members' wives in the 18-24 age range had 30 percent unemployment rates.
Military spouses told the survey they both wanted and needed to work...
However, active duty military spouses are more likely to have moved within states, across states, and abroad, compared to their civilian and veteran counterparts.
The increased likelihood of moving from one geographic location to another further compounds economic issues for these families.
"I'm amazed, but there's a very real need."
