I’ve been around food stamps, back when they were paper.
One strange thing was that if you did not use them all for a couple months in a row, you got your benefit reduced.
This led to a situation where the recipient MUST go buy a couple of tenderloins, a cooked lobster or two (raw lobster or shrimp not covered, but the grocery store would steam it for you). This usually happened at the end of the month. Just to keep at the benefit level you were at. I knew someone who’d buy a roast, then invite folks over for a dinner, and charge them some small amount, sort of like a rent party.
And there were huge bags of rice and blocks of a cheese-like substance like fireplace logs, sacks of beans, and instant milk.