I wonder how many people we could employ with the USDA food stores you are talking about. Paid for by the reduction in fraud.
And yes they should be sold as raw food so they would have to be prepared, not given as meals ready to eat or nuke.
I see civic centers in this too to help teach people how to manage. Classes that they don’t teach anymore like Home Economics.
I have no idea if it is feasible but sounds like it could be interesting.
newsflash: many of the poor in NYC do not have access to cooking facilities.