Evaluation of the effectiveness of the use of food cards for the poor

The article is devoted to the current problem of overcoming poverty in Russia. The problem can be solved be solved, among other things, through the use of food cards at the legislative level. As one of the additional measures to support persons with incomes below the subsistence level, the article discusses the introduction of social food cards. It is proposes using targeted food cards to purchase domestic products for 16 million people with incomes below the subsistence level. The feasibility and feasibility of introducing food cards for the poor has been substantiated. To assess the effectiveness of this event, the domestic simulation model of Russian GDP reproduction P1-4-2 (2023-0) was used. Model belongs to the class of simulation-balance models and is the latest version of similar models that reflect the material aspect of GDP reproduction of the Russian economy. Model Р1-4-2(2023-0) is based on official reporting by Federal State Statistics Service on the national accounting system since 1995 and uses expert hypotheses about the relationship between various parameters. The working hypotheses of the model, graphs of indicators of the initial data scenario and forecast results for the interval 2024 - 2035 are presented. Calculations have shown that with a hypothetical increase in cash incomes of the poorest segments of the population due to the introduction of food cards, there is a significant increase in GDP and an increase in consolidated budget revenues, which (on average) compensates for initial expenses by 75%. It has been proven that measures to introduce targeted food cards for the poor are effective and lead to a significant acceleration of economic development.