The federal government is on a mission to make American healthy again.
Today, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins announced the U.S. Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Service is proposing changes to strengthen the stocking requirements for retailers participating in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. These changes would protect the program, participants, and taxpayers by mitigating fraud, waste, and abuse and ensuring additional healthy food options for recipient families.
About 42 million people nationwide rely on food from SNAP. States distribute debit cards to low-income residents. Residents can swipe cards at grocery stores, convenience stores, and farmers' markets.
"Retailers participating in SNAP need to sell real food, plain and simple. Right now, the bar for stocking food as a SNAP retailer is far too low, allowing people to game the system and leaving vulnerable Americans without healthy food options. These common-sense changes are designed to minimize benefit trafficking and skimming, among other fraudulent activities, while making more nutritious foods available to families who rely on the program,” said Secretary Brooke Rollins. “This is another step forward in President Trump’s mission to Make America Healthy Again.”
Currently, SNAP retailers are required to stock three varieties of food in each of four staple food categories – dairy, protein, grain, and fruits and vegetables – 12 foods total. The proposed rule:
Increases variety requirements to seven per staple food category, more than doubling the food choices available to SNAP participants.
Closes loopholes that allow certain snack foods to count as staple foods, emphasizing the importance of healthy, whole food.
Simplifies how foods are classified, making the standards easier for retailers to understand – and FNS to enforce.
🚨 USDA is proposing changes to strengthen stocking requirements for SNAP retailers. These changes would protect the program, participants, and taxpayers by mitigating fraud, waste, and abuse and ensuring additional healthy food options for recipient families.
— Dept. of Agriculture (@USDA) September 24, 2025
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This proposed rule is part of USDA’s broader commitment to ensuring federal nutrition programs operate with integrity and respect to the American taxpayer.
Low stocking requirements make SNAP more vulnerable to fraud and abuse, permitting retailers that aren’t genuinely in the business of selling food to cash in on taxpayer-funded benefits. With nearly 266,000 retailers redeeming $96 billion in SNAP benefits per year, no amount of fraud will be tolerated.
The changes also support the Trump administration’s promise to turn the tide on chronic disease and Make America Healthy Again. USDA is actively reorienting SNAP towards better nutrition and emphasizing whole, healthy food for program participants. This includes approving 12 states to exclude certain unhealthy foods from purchase with SNAP benefits.
USDA welcomes comments on the proposed rule from interested parties and the public. The full text of the rule is available on the FNS website. Comments may be submitted Sept. 25 through Nov. 24, 2025, by visiting regulations.gov.
About 12 states have restricted people from buying junk and soda using SNAP dollars starting in 2026.
- Arkansas: Restricts purchase of soda, fruit and vegetable drinks with less than 50% natural juice, unhealthy drinks, and candy. Colorado: Restrict purchase of soft drinks
- Florida: Restricts purchase of soda, energy drinks, candy, and prepared desserts
- Idaho: Restricts purchase of soda and candy
- Iowa: Restricts all taxable food food items except food producing plants and seeds for food producing plants
- Louisiana: Restricts purchase of soft drinks, energy drinks, and candy.
- Nebraska: Restricts purchase of soft drinks and energy drinks
- Oklahoma: Restricts purchase of soft drinks and candy
- Texas: Restricts purchase of sweetened drinks and candy
- Utah: Restricts purchase of soft drinks
- West Virginia: Restricts purchase of soda.
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