16% of South Carolinians taking food stamps

Image by Flickr user brandon shigeta Image by 20091017-food-stamps.jpg

According to data released by the USDA on September 30th, 1-in-6 South Carolinian's are taking food stamps.

Counting D.C., the figure makes us the 9th most receiving state by percent, and puts us well above that national average of 1-in-8.

As for how the trend of rising food stamp use reflects what's going on in the economy, keep in mind that most food stamp applications are aimed to be granted in 30 days.

For those of you that are curious: Yes, this piece was spurred on by a lengthier article by SC Biz News in which they reported that one-in-five South Carolina households are receiving food stamps. But we went with the USDA figure by percent of population which is probably a bit more accurate -- depending on what you're trying to measure.