Hastings, Justine S. <br/><br/>
The Effect of SNAP on the Composition of Purchased Foods:  Evidence and Implications / 
Justine S. Hastings, Ryan E. Kessler, Jesse M. Shapiro. 
 - Cambridge, Mass.  National Bureau of Economic Research  2019. 
 - 1 online resource:  illustrations (black and white); 
 - NBER working paper series  no. w25953 .
 - Working Paper Series (National Bureau of Economic Research)  no. w25953. .
<br/><br/> June 2019. 
<br/><br/> We use detailed data from a large retail panel to study the effect of participation in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) on the composition and nutrient content of foods purchased for at-home consumption. We find that the effect of SNAP participation is small relative to the cross-sectional variation in most of the outcomes we consider. Estimates from a model relating the composition of a household's food purchases to the household's current level of food spending imply that closing the gap in food spending between high- and low-SES households would not close the gap in summary measures of food healthfulness. 
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