Trump Admin Approves 6 States to Restrict Food Stamps

Officials approved waivers from Hawaii, Missouri, North Dakota, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia.

Published: 12/10/2025, 10:34:58 PM EST

Trump Admin Approves 6 States to Restrict Food Stamps — An EBT sign is displayed on the window of a grocery store in the Flatbush neighborhood of the Brooklyn borough of New York City on Oct. 30, 2025. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

Six more states are able to restrict food stamps starting in 2026, federal officials announced on Dec. 10.

Requests to narrow which products can be purchased by residents of Hawaii, Virginia, and four other states have been approved, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said.

"With these new waivers, we are empowering states to lead, protecting our children from the dangers of highly processed foods, and moving one step closer to the president’s promise to Make America Healthy Again," Rollins said in a statement.

Missouri officials asked for and received approval to bar residents from using food stamps, or money conveyed through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), for items such as candy and soft drinks.

North Dakota is prohibiting food stamps from being used for candy, soft drinks, energy drinks, baking ingredients such as baking chocolate, gum, mints, chocolate-covered and candy-coated nuts, trail mix with pieces of candy, and some cereal and energy bars.

"This waiver will lead to better health outcomes and quality of life for North Dakotans who participate in SNAP," North Dakota Gov. Kelly Armstrong said in a statement.

South Carolina's waiver excludes candy, energy drinks, soft drinks, and sweetened beverages.

“By encouraging families to purchase healthy, nutritious food—and not junk food—we ensure that federal taxpayer dollars are used to their maximum benefit and keep South Carolina at the forefront of the effort to Make America Healthy Again," South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster said in a statement.

Tennessee had asked for permission to let people use food stamps to buy prepared foods such as rotisserie chicken and forbid them from buying items with sugar or corn syrup as the primary ingredient.

Details of the waivers for Hawaii and Virginia have not yet been made available.

Some organizations such as the National Association of Convenience Stores have criticized the waivers, saying that they will reduce access to food and impose costs on retailers.

Approximately 42 million Americans receive food stamps under SNAP, usually because they earn income below the program's limits.

The Department of Agriculture found in a 2016 report that the items most purchased by SNAP recipients were meat, poultry, and seafood, followed by soda and other sweetened beverages.

Federal officials said in a report issued in September that their strategy to improve the health of Americans included providing states with assistance in developing and implementing food stamp changes "to restrict the purchase of junk food and reorient the program towards better nutrition."

Officials had previously approved restrictions for Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah, and West Virginia. Most of those restrictions, which include curbs on soft drinks and candy, are scheduled to start on Jan. 1, 2026.

“Thank you to the 18 governors who are leading the charge on SNAP reform to restore the health of Americans—especially our kids," Kennedy said in a statement. "Their courageous leadership is exactly what we need to Make America Healthy Again."

Rollins noted at a Dec. 10 briefing in Washington that both red and blue states are among those that have sought and received waivers, a fact she said she is proud of.

From The Epoch Times