A new study by the National Priorities Project has found that only half of eligible households received food stamp benefits in 2004. Research findings indicate that:

• Half of all low-income people did not receive Food Stamp Program benefits.
• Counties with lower poverty rates and higher median household incomes had lower percentages of low-income people that were Food Stamp recipients.
• A significant number of counties, 13.2 percent, had below-average percentages of Food Stamps, yet had above-average poverty rates.
• The rural South had the highest percentage of enrollment in the Food Stamp program and more than half of all children were eligible for lunches through the National School Lunch Program.

According to the report, 58.9% of low-income people in Michigan received food stamps in 2004. Additionally, 13.6% of people lived in poverty and 17.5% of the population had low-income status in the state during 2004.

The report explained that low-income people occasionally do not participate in the food stamp program due to reasons relating to the broad concepts of "eligibility," "stigma," and "informal networks," and "other barriers." "Eligibility" restrictions included those on immigrants and certification requirements. Additionally, there are issues of "stigma" with society granting status to wealth and discouraging people from seeking assistance, especially in areas with low poverty rates and higher median incomes. "Informal networks" such as family and friends occasionally aid in helping people to access benefits where they exist, but when such networks due not exist government outreach programs are often inadequate. "Other barriers" such as difficulties in the application process and re-certification further reduce the number of people receiving benefits.