750 Stores Booted Out Of Food Stamp Program

More than 750 grocery stores, liquor outlets and other stores, many with little or no food on the shelves, were kicked out of the federal food stamp program Friday in the latest crackdown by the Agriculture Department.

Many of the stores were expelled because they fail to meet the government’s rules for selling the proper mix of staple or wholesome foods. Other stores were nonexistent, and many are suspected of criminal activity, department officials said.

Friday’s actions against the retailers come on the heels of an investigation this summer by Agriculture Department auditors, who found that the black market for food stamps is thriving in part because regulators have allowed scores of questionable businesses to accept the coupons.