SPANISH: 

SUBASTA DE UNA (1) FICHA o SET DE FICHAS CUPONES, SEGUN DESCRITO ARRIBA, ORIGINAL AUTENTICA Y EN EXCELENTE ESTADO, PERTENECIENTE AL COMERCIO DESCRITO EN EL TITULO, DIFICIL DE HALLAR. USTED RECIBIRA FICHA (o SET DE FICHAS) DEL TIPO Y CALIDAD SIMILAR A LA MOSTRADA EN LA FOTO. GRACIAS. ESTA FICHA (O FICHAS) APARECEN DEBIDAMENTE LISTADAS EN EL CATALOGO A NIVEL NACIONAL " FOOD STAMP CREDIT TOKENS " PUBLICADO EN 2020 POR B. CREEL Y J. OSTENDORF, CON 40 PAGINAS DESCRIBIENDO MAS DE 2000 FICHAS DE CUPONES DE PUERTO RICO, Y DEL CUAL FUI COLABORADOR, JUNTO CON OTROS EXPERTOS BORICUAS. ESTA EN INGLES, ELLOS LO VENDEN, VEA LAS FOTOS PARA QUE TENGA UNA IDEA.

!SALUDOS!

               HE AQUI UNA BREVE SINOPSIS DE LA HISTORIA DE LAS FICHAS & VALES DE CUPONES, UNA VEZ COMUNES, NO TAN SOLO EN COLMADOS & SUPERMERCADOS, SINO TAMBIEN USADAS EN PUESTOS DE PLAZAS DE MERCADO, CARNICERIAS, PANADERIAS, & HASTA TIENDAS DE ESTACIONES DE GASOLINA! MIENTRAS MUCHOS DE ESTOS COMERCIOS EXISTEN, YA LA MAYORIA HAN CESADO O CAMBIADO DE NOMBRE & ADMINISTRACION MUCHAS VECES, LO QUE DIFICULTA EL HALLARLAS.

                AL COMENZAR EL PROGRAMA DE CUPONES DE ALIMENTOS EN PUERTO RICO LOS BENEFICIARIOS RECIBIAN MENSUALMENTE POR PERSONA O GRUPO FAMILIAR UNA CANTIDAD DETERMINADA DE DINERO EN LIBRETAS DE CUPONES DE VARIAS DENOMINACIONES $1.00 (MARRON-BROWN) $5.00 (PURPURA) & $10.00 (VERDE MONTE) PARA COMPRAR SOLAMENTE ALIMENTOS EN ESTABLECIMIENTOS AUTORIZADOS POR U.S.D.A., LA LEY ESTABLECIA QUE LOS COMERCIANTES NO PODIAN DEVOLVER CAMBIO EN MONEDA OFICIAL (METALICO).

                 COMO NO EXISTIAN CUPONES POR VALOR MENOR A UN DOLAR LOS COMERCIANTES SE INGENIARON LOS MEDIOS PARA PODER CUMPLIR CON LOS REQUISITOS DE LEY Y OPTARON POR UTILIZAR, PRIMERAMENTE, LOS RECIBOS POR LA PARTE POSTERIOR LA CANTIDAD DE CREDITO, PERO ESTOS RESULTARON NO SER PRACTICOS, PUES PODIAN SER FALSIFICADOS. LUEGO ALGUNOS COMERCIANTES UTILIZARON: SELLOS DE GOMA, ESTAMPANDOSE EN LA TIENDA. DESPUES DECIDIERON UTILIZAR TARJETAS IMPRESAS EN CARTULINA O PAPEL, MEDIANTE METODOS DE LITOGRAFIA, SERIGRAFIA, DITTO, O MIMEOGRAFO, LOCALMENTE.

                 PARA 1977 SE ADOPTO EL UTILIZAR FICHAS PLASTICAS DURADERAS. ALGUNOS COMERCIANTES UTILIZARON "WOODEN NICKELS", MIENTRAS LA CADENA GRAND UNION UTILIZO FICHAS EN ALUMINIO. LAS FICHAS FUERON FABRICADAS EN VARIOS ESTILOS, DIAMETROS, VALORES & COLORES. MAYORMENTE HECHAS EN ESTADOS UNIDOS, POR LO REGULAR SE IMPRIMIAN MEDIANTE UN PROCESO CON CALOR, IMPRIMIENDOSE EN TINTA, EN EL ANVERSO: NOMBRE DEL COMERCIO, LOCALIDAD, PUEBLO & NUMERO DE AUTORIZACION. AL REVERSO: LA LEYENDA: PROGRAMA DE CUPONES PARA ALIMENTOS AUTORIZADOS, O EN INGLES: "FOOD STAMP CREDIT IN ELIGIBLE FOODS", CON EL VALOR AL CENTRO.

                 A FINALES DE 1979 SE AUTORIZA A LOS COMERCIANTES EL CAMBIO DEL SOBRANTE DE LOS CUPONES POR MONEDA OFICIAL, POR LO CUAL LAS FICHAS & VALES SON DESCARTADOS. EN LA ACTUALIDAD, LA COLECCION Y CONSERVACION DE FICHAS & VALES ES DE GRAN INTERES HISTORICO - NUMISMATICO.  MIENTRAS LAS FICHAS DE GRANDES CADENAS & MERCADOS DE LO CENTROS URBANOS SE HAYAN CON BASTANTE SEGURIDAD, ALGUNAS PIEZAS, PRINCIPALMENTE, DE COLMADOS CENTRADOS EN EL INTERIOR DE LA ISLA SON MUY RAROS O YA IMPOSIBLES DE CONSEGUIR.

ENGLISH:

Howdy!

For sale one (1) genuine original Food Stamp Credit token type plastic coin (or coins if a set being sold) belonging to the commerce shown above. This round token is made of either plastic or hard rubber material, depending on the manufacturer, with a hot stamp enamel of the color shown in the photos. it is authentic and genuine from the era when food stamp tokens were used in Puerto Rico, 1974 through 1979. It may not show the common verbiage used in regular Statewide tokens, please refer to the 2020 catalog FOOD STAMP CREDIT TOKENS by Buckner Creel and John Ostendorf, in which I also collaborated, to get the whole information. Even though most PR tokens were minted in the traditional colors of Black 1c, Green 5c, Blue 10c, Red 25c, and Pink 50c, etc., there were several interesting deviations to this rule right before the close or end of this government program, simply to avoid confusion with the tokens from a neighboring grocery store or supermarket chain.

The conditions of the token (or tokens) you will receive vary, but the photos will give you an idea of condition you will receive. If really messed up I will write it in big bold letters. While most are fairly circulated, and exhibit either some dirt or small marks and scratches some may have been stained, faded, or scratched from mishandling and improper storage throughout the years before ending up in our hands. In any case, please refer to the  huge 2020 catalog FOOD STAMP CREDIT TOKENS by Buckner Creel and John Ostendorf, in which I also collaborated. 

 Thanks for watching!

HISTORY OF PUERTO RICO FOOD STAMP TOKENS

PUBLIC LAW 88-525 OF AUGUST 31, 1964, AMENDED 1973 TO BENEFIT LOW INCOME PEOPLE IN NEED.

Similar to what happened in mainland USA, beneficiaries were first issued a booklet of food stamp money of pre determined value in accordance to need. Each booklet had paper money checks in values of $1 brown note, $5 purple note, and $10 green note. In the beginning it was forbidden for merchants to give back any change. As customers demanded change, merchants were first forced to write down the amount of any change left at the back of the receipt, in order for the customer to use that change at a future purchase. 

As this lead to counterfeiting signatures and such, merchants started rubbing stamping amounts at the back of receipts, which eventually lead to merchants issuing paper scrips, usually provided by a local printing source, through a variety of processes, such as ditto, lithography, serigraph, or photocopy.  

At around 1977 merchants in mainland USA started issuing plastic tokens, which immediately took hold in Puerto Rico. Plastic tokens were good against counterfeiting, illegal printing at a local source, and above all, very durable, which lead to less expenses making more runs of it. Half a dozen North American companies with sales representatives in the island supplied local merchants their tokens. It is known of one local plastic token manufacturer whose tokens we know, and who was located on the West coast of Puerto Rico, but whose identity I yet do not know. 

American companies issued tokens with the familiar phrase "Food Stamp Credit in Eligible Foods" surrounding a denomination on one side, with the merchants business name, address, and U.S.D.A. license number or other information, on the opposite side. Eventually, local merchants demanded their tokens to be in Spanish: " Programa de Cupones para Alimentos Autorizados ". Some later issues would disregard that phrase, and only include the merchants information and token denomination on one side, leaving the opposite side blank. 

By 1979 the U.S.D.A. authorized merchants to give ca$h change to Food Stamp Credit recipients, hence making the token thing obsolete overnight. Sadly, the great majority ended in the trash, very few examples surviving, thanks to visionary thinking from a few serious collectors. Still, from the approximately 3,500 pieces issued, well over half, specially the early paper scripts, have disappeared forever, only known to have existed thanks to written documentation showing the merchant had U.S.D.A. license to accept Food Stamp credit money, and to first hand accounts from customers who used them.  

As English tokens came first, these are usually scarcer, hence more valuable. Many merchants had the same token in the English version and then Spanish version, which makes Puerto Rican food stamp credit tokens and scrips so much more fun - and challenging to collect - than collecting food stamp tokens of other American jurisdictions, because of the addiction developed by the wanting to have a given island merchant tokens both in its English 5 pieces version and in its Spanish 5 pieces version, thus if a normal set is 5 pieces (1,5,10,25,50 cents) becomes 10 pieces in PR.

 Another situation is the fact that many of the Spanish tokens later made had the phrase separated from the denomination by 1 or by 2 circles: As merchants that were very successful  had to replenish their depleted stock of tokens by ordering a new badge of the same, tokens of the first Spanish badge having 1 circle now get mingled with tokens of the 2nd badge having 2 circles! Thus at the end of the day, some merchants sets become 15 pieces: English, Spanish 1 circle, and Spanish 2 circles. And in cases of the earlier merchants, you even have paper scrips, so probably 20 piece set, if not more!!!