Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced Friday that the Trump administration had granted permission to West Virginia to ban the use of federal food assistance dollars to buy soft drinks. At an event in Martinsburg, WV, RFK Jr. gave West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrissey a first-of-its-kind waiver to permit the ban and had a message for the rest of the country: “Apply for a waiver to my agency, and we’re going to give it to you.”
“Taxpayer dollars should be targeted toward nutritious foods,” Gov. Patrick Morrisey said at a lectern emblazoned with a “MAHA Starts Here” sign.
RFK Jr. announced that he was becoming roly-poly Governor Morrissey’s personal trainer and would be submitting him to public weigh-ins. In all seriousness, I could not tell if that was a joke. Watch the video to determine for yourself and to hear the zinger that RFK Jr. lobbed at Morrissey.
In addition to banning soft drinks from the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, also known as SNAP, Governor Morrissey announced that West Virginia would ban several widely used food dyes from the school lunch program and increase work and educational requirements for SNAP eligibility.
“I think we can all agree work is good, work is moral and it helps us be stronger in the mind and body and we need more of that right here in West Virginia,” Mr. Morrisey said. “Outside of limited exceptions, if you have the ability to work, you should.”
This marks a turning point in the battle between nutritional advocates and beverage manufacturers and sellers over whether SNAP dollars should be used to buy soft drinks.
Soft drinks are the top item purchased with SNAP benefits.
- Soft Drinks
- Fluid Milk
- Ground Beef
- Bag Snacks
- Cheese
- Baked Breads
- Cold Cereal
- Fresh Chicken
- Frozen Handhelds and Snacks
- Lunchmeat
- Candy
- Infant Formula
- Frozen Pizza
- Refrigerated Juices/Drinks
- Ice Cream
- Coffee and Creamers
- Cookies
- Water
- Shelf Stable Juice
- Eggs/Muffins/Potatoes
“Big Beverage” was not happy because this potentially represents billions in lost revenue.
“What’s unhelpful about this whole conversation is that soda is not driving obesity,” said Merideth Potter, senior vice president at the American Beverage Association, the industry’s lobbying group. “We’ve become this easy punching bag.”
American Beverage, the lobbying organization for producers and distributors of non-alcoholic beverages, released a statement decrying the efforts to remove junk food from a program that is supposed to provide nutrition: “Limiting choice by restricting SNAP purchases is a slippery slope that won’t make Americans healthier. It is government overreach that takes away choice from families in need while defining ‘good’ and ‘bad’ food in the grocery aisle. Americans receiving SNAP benefits should be able to make the same buying decisions we all do and deserve the same choices.”
Personally, I think the framing of this issue as a “government overreach” or “rights” argument is the height of dishonesty. SNAP benefits, as the name indicates, are “supplemental” to the normal food budget. The money is a government benefit and it has the right to decide what that benefit can be used for. If you want to buy candy and soft drinks, go right ahead, but use your own money. The other major nutritional program, the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, also known as WIC, already prohibits soft drink purchases, and the sky didn’t fall in.
This may be a losing battle for “Big Beverage” unless Congress intervenes. Not only did RFK Jr. solicit waiver applications, but Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins indicated that USDA, historically the stumbling block in attempts to ban soft drinks from SNAP, is on board. In a statement, she said, “I look forward to receiving Governor Morrisey’s SNAP pilot request and will work swiftly to make certain West Virginia is equipped with the technical assistance and expertise to move forward.”
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