Efforts to remove soda and candy from the list of products that can be bought through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program are moving forward.
The Department of Agriculture is putting requests from states to make changes to the program — often referred to by its former name of food stamps — on a fast track for approval, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Arkansas and Indiana are among the states that have filed to remove soda and candy from the list of what can be bought with SNAP benefits.
Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said the USDA will act “very, very quickly” to approve states’ requests.
“That’s exactly the vision of making America healthy again,” Rollins said. “I am 100 percent certain that these changes will be nothing but positive for those underserved communities that are food-challenged.”
Arkansas wants candy and all sodas banned by July 2026.
“Our goal is not to hurt any industry but to support and promote healthier lifestyles,” Arkansas Gov. Sarah Sanders said. “No one is saying you can’t have a Diet Coke or a candy bar. We’re saying you can’t do it with taxpayer money.”
“President Trump and his administration have put a laser focus on solving America’s chronic disease epidemic and reforming our food stamp program is a great place to start,” Sanders said in a release on her website.
“Banning soft drinks and candy from food stamps will remove some of the least-healthy, most-processed foods from the program and encourage low-income Arkansans to eat better. Arkansas leads the nation in common-sense, conservative reforms and I was proud to work with Secretary Rollins to make this move and take a strong first step toward broader changes to our food stamp program,” she said.
Should soda and candy be removed from food stamps programs?
Last month, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. challenged states to follow the lead of West Virginia, where Republican Gov. Patrick Morrisey announced that he will be seeking permission from the Department of Agriculture to put soda on the list of items that cannot be bought through SNAP, according to The Washington Post.
Kennedy issued a full-throated request for states to copy Morrisey’s lead.
“I urge every Governor to follow West Virginia’s lead and submit a waiver to the USDA to remove soda from SNAP,” Kennedy said in a statement, according to Newsweek.
“If there’s one thing we can agree on, it should be eliminating taxpayer-funded soda subsidies for lower-income kids. I look forward to inviting every governor who submits a waiver to come celebrate with me at the White House this fall,” he said.
A report in Newsweek said that states including Arizona, Idaho, Iowa, Missouri, Montana, Tennessee, Texas and Utah are also considering some type of ban on allowing SNAP to be spent on soda and/or candy.
Republican state Sen. Daniel Zolnikov, who is sponsoring a bill in Montana to ban SNAP benefits from being used to buy soda and candy, said the bill is not punitive, according to KECI-TV.
“People said this bill is against low-income individuals but let me be clear: I am not against low-income folks having a soda or a treat,” he said.
“But I am against the endless marketing to parents and our children that processed food and drinks is the equivalent to that of produce, fruits, and meat. And as our health worsens and obesity rates increase, our healthcare costs continue to balloon, putting our medical system at stake,” he said.
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