Actress Gwyneth Paltrow failed in her $29 Food Stamp Challenge, admitting in her GOOP newsletter that she could only make it through four days of the experiment.
Celebrity chef Mario Batali had challenged Paltrow to live on what some low-income families get on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program to bring awareness and donations to the Food Bank for New York City,
noted GOOP.
"As I suspected, we only made it through about four days, when I personally broke and had some chicken and fresh vegetables (and in full transparency, half a bag of black licorice)," Paltrow wrote. "My perspective has been forever altered by how difficult it was to eat wholesome, nutritious food on that budget, even for just a few days – a challenge that 47 million Americans face every day, week, and year."
"A few takeaways from the week were that vegetarian staples liked dried beans and rice go a long way – and we were able to come up with a few recipes on a super tight budget. After trying to complete this challenge (I would give myself a C-), I am even more outraged that there is still not equal pay in the workplace," said Paltrow.
Paltrow posted a Twitter message on April 9 showing the food that she was able to purchase during the challenge.
Some of the choices brought negative comments from social media.
Time magazine's Daniel D'Addario wrote that he felt Paltrow's experiment showed the difficulty of eating on the SNAP limits and awareness.
"Simply by being her irrepressible self and seeking a subtle touch of gourmet in straitened circumstances, she's brought far more attention to the issues of poverty and hunger than could the average, less provocative celebrity," D'Addario wrote.