Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
Editorials & Other Articles
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
With inflation running hot, Google searches for food stamps remain elevated
Yahoo Finance
With inflation running hot, Google searches for food stamps remain elevated
Brian Sozzi · Anchor, Editor-at-Large
Wed, March 30, 2022, 6:51 AM
Bruising levels of inflation from rent to gas to food continues to hit many American households hard, so hard it may be pushing a new group of the population into food stamps, hints new data.
Google search volumes are still running 100% higher than pre-pandemic levels (see chart below), according to DataTrek. Search volumes have trended higher since the start of 2022 as inflation has accelerated, notably at the gas pump. ... Volumes peaked in April 2020 as millions of people lost their job due to the crushing COVID-19 pandemic.
"It is remarkable that 'food stamp' Google search volumes remain so elevated in what other economic indicators say is a hot U.S. economy, but we suspect food inflation and still-lower levels of labor force participation versus pre-pandemic are playing a role here," DataTrek says.
Some 41.5 million people were on food stamps at the end of 2021, according to government data. The average benefit per person tallied $218.
{snip}
With inflation running hot, Google searches for food stamps remain elevated
Brian Sozzi · Anchor, Editor-at-Large
Wed, March 30, 2022, 6:51 AM
Bruising levels of inflation from rent to gas to food continues to hit many American households hard, so hard it may be pushing a new group of the population into food stamps, hints new data.
Google search volumes are still running 100% higher than pre-pandemic levels (see chart below), according to DataTrek. Search volumes have trended higher since the start of 2022 as inflation has accelerated, notably at the gas pump. ... Volumes peaked in April 2020 as millions of people lost their job due to the crushing COVID-19 pandemic.
"It is remarkable that 'food stamp' Google search volumes remain so elevated in what other economic indicators say is a hot U.S. economy, but we suspect food inflation and still-lower levels of labor force participation versus pre-pandemic are playing a role here," DataTrek says.
Some 41.5 million people were on food stamps at the end of 2021, according to government data. The average benefit per person tallied $218.
{snip}