Oregon is one of six states with 20% or more of its population using food stamps.
Oregon is one of six states with 20% or more of its population using food stamps.
The others are Tennessee, Kentucky, Mississippi, New Mexico and Louisiana.
“Oregon doesn’t come to mind when you think about states needing food stamps,” says Karen Edmonds, programs and services director at FOOD for Lane County, a food bank.
“But what we are seeing in Oregon is a slow crawl out of the recession,” Edmonds says. “Even though the recession is considered over … the situation is not getting better.”
Oregon doesn’t have the endemic poverty that has plagued other states with high rates of food stamp use, but it has a boom-or-bust economy that relies on manufacturing, lumber and construction — three industries ravaged by the recession — says Mary King, an economics professor at Portland State University.
Read more at USA Today.
