In 2026, 18 states, including Missouri, are putting restrictions on what food consumers can buy with food stamps. While restrictions vary by state, most are banning items like candy, soda, energy drinks, and more.
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) gives lower-income families assistance in buying food. These are usually in the form of Electronic Benefit Transfers (EBT), or food stamps, which give you a certain amount of money each month to buy food.
The Department of Health under the Trump administration has been trying to help solve the obesity problem in America. For a long time, the U.S. has had a reputation of being an unhealthy country.
Some people think this is due to the fast food culture in America and the sale of a lot of highly processed foods in grocery stores.
However, the size of American cities might actually be the problem. A lot of our country is made up of smaller rural communities. Resources in these places are less available than bigger urban areas.
A “food desert” is a place where most of a community lives one mile or more away from a supermarket. Supermarkets are where many people get fresh foods, such as produce or healthy proteins.
Most of these people in food deserts rely on gas stations and convenience stores for a majority of their food. These stores mainly sell highly processed and unhealthy foods, like chips and candy.
To assume that people who use food stamps are buying junk food simply because they want to is a stretch. For most families, these types of food are their only option.
The language used in some of these restrictions are also vague. This is raising questions about what will actually be restricted and what will be okay.
In Missouri, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) says that, “certain unhealthy beverages” will be restricted. Virginia is restraining “sweetened beverages.”
What counts as an unhealthy beverage? Are some unhealthy beverages allowed? What about drinks like orange juice, which is very sweet with added sugar, but considered healthy?
Leaving guidelines vague might create distrust among the people, and make them question what they can safely add to their cart.
If you’re confused about what you can get, you can try using one of the resources that the USDA provides. For Missourians, you can visit the Department of Social Services website, or email the director’s office with questions.
With all this considered, people are wondering if these steps will truly lead to helping the obesity problem in America.
According to the USDA, 12.3 percent of U.S. residents received funding from SNAP in 2024. However, over 40 percent of Americans are considered obese.
Considering that not everyone on food stamps is obese, even if those who were overweight and on food stamps were to become a healthy weight, that would barely put a dent in that 40 percent.
It is also unlikely to change bad eating habits, as some people might be willing to spend the extra money to get these items anyway.
Overall, while these changes have good intentions behind them, it is questionable if they will actually work. As the year progresses, we will see if more states pass restrictions, or if some are taken away.
