Associated Press - November 27, 2009 2:14 PM ET
CHICAGO (AP) - The estimate made headlines around the country: Almost half of all U.S. kids will be on food stamps at some time during childhood.
Skeptics wondered how that could be true in the land of plenty. Many statisticians and policy analysts, however, say the projection seems about right.
A recent U.S. Department of Agriculture report on food stamp enrollment says some of the country's most needy citizens are missing out. And a USDA hunger report last week raised similar concerns, finding that more than one in seven American households lacked "food security" in 2008.
Lisa Zilligen of Chicago is an example. The 28-year-old mother of 3 attends Loyola University full-time and earns about $400 a month from a campus job.
She's been getting about $600 in food stamps for the past several months and says her family wouldn't survive without it.
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