A group of celebrities have come together to try to make it easier for people on food stamps to find healthy food.
“Q-tips, lipsticks, fitbits,” Shailene Woodley says in a new public service announcement. These are all things you can buy online. But in 2016, food stamps cannot be widely used online.
Woodley, Rosario Dawson, Will Smith and Kristen Bell are just a few of the big name stars teaming up with Thrive Market, a digital marketplace where individuals can purchase affordable, healthy food. They’re petitioning lawmakers and retailers to allow the use of food stamps online.
The PSA is aimed at bringing awareness to the 23.5 million Americans living in “food deserts,” according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).These are individuals relying on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), also known as food stamps, and living more than one mile from a grocery store with limited means of transportation.
Woodley is trying to change that. The “Divergent” star recently went to Capitol Hill to make the case that allowing food stamps to be used online will not only enable individuals to purchase food, but give them access to healthier options.
In a statement to CNN, a spokesperson for the USDA says pilot programs for online food stamp use are in the works.
Woodley also revealed that this cause is deeply personal to her because she has family members and friends who have used food stamps.
“It’s our civil responsibility,” she said. “It’s our duty — as human beings to offer the right of healthy food.”
