Could you survive on just $4 per day without going hungry? Experience what life can be like for millions of low-income Americans who receive SNAP benefits.
Take FRAC’s SNAP Challenge!
Most participants take the Challenge for one week and discover they have to make difficult food shopping choices, and often realize how difficult it is to afford nutritious foods, and stay healthy. While living on a SNAP budget for just a week cannot come close to the challenges encountered by low-income families week after week and month after month, it does provide those who take the Challenge with a new perspective and greater understanding.
For the past 10 years, FRAC has supported and fostered SNAP Challenges to help educate the public and opinion leaders about the important role SNAP plays in mitigating hunger and poverty — and the need to strengthen the program so beneficiaries can afford enough food for their health and well-being.
The Challenge first captured public attention in 2006 when FRAC allies in Philadelphia hosted one, followed by groups in Wichita, Kansas.
The Challenge took the national stage in 2007 when four Members of Congress — Representatives James McGovern (D-Mass.), Jo Ann Emerson (R-Mo.), Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.), and Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) — pledged to live for one week on an average SNAP budget and blogged about their experiences.
Since then, hundreds — if not thousands — of people have taken the Challenge, including Members of Congress, governors, state legislators, mayors, celebrities, religious and community leaders, reporters, and average citizens.
Now you can too…

SNAP Challenge Toolkit
Includes Challenge guidelines, registration hints, host event ideas, media planning information, and more.
Recent Publications & Data
See More Resources- Fact Sheet
The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 establishes a permanent, nationwide Summer Electronic Benefit Transfer (Summer EBT) Program to begin the summer of 2024 and makes changes to the Pandemic-EBT Program for the summer of 2023.
Learn more about provisions in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 in FRAC’s fact sheet on Summer and Pandemic EBT Programs.
Read the fact sheet - Report
This report measures the reach of the Summer Nutrition Programs in July 2021, nationally and in each state, compared to July 2019 and July 2020.
Read the report - Guide
Partial implementation allows school districts to implement the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) in individual schools, a group of schools, or multiple groups of schools to participate in CEP instead of implementing it district-wide. Learn more about why school districts choose CEP, calculating CEP reimbursements, grouping, and communication strategies in this guide.
Read the guide - Fact Sheet
In 2022, the country started to “return to normal,” while still grappling with the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic. Throughout the year, FRAC worked steadfastly to strengthen the federal nutrition programs. Learn more about FRAC’s advocacy and research highlights from 2022 in our Year in Review brief.
Read the review