The government had to know this when they authorized distribution of these cards. Only reason I can think of is the mantra that a rising tide lifts all boats. The money going straight back into the local economy.
Just my TCW.
Trickle down economy?
Perhaps apocryphal: a woman tried to use food stamps to get cat food and was told it was not allowed. She held up the line and came back with a package of shrimp from the Deli section. Told to me by a neighbor who had to wait (and couldn't afford the shrimp).