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1. What is the Food and Nutritional Services Program?

Features of the program include:

• It is an “Entitlement” program for eligible households
• It is designed to improve nutrition among low-income households by increasing their food-buying power
• It is a Federal Program

2. How do you actually get the benefits and buy food?

Stores are certified by Food and Nutrition Services (FNS) in Raleigh. Stores should only allow edible foods (vegetables seeds or plants) to be bought with food stamps. Food stamps cannot be used for: 

• Alcohol
• Household Items
• Medicines
• Paper Products
• Pet Food
• Soaps
• Tobacco Products
• Vitamins

3. What is the County role?

Department of Social Services (DSS) takes and processes applications, makes changes and completes recertifications for this program.

4. What is the timeframe for receiving food assistance if eligible?

Timeframes are the same for all counties, 30 days for normal and 7 days for emergency cases.