00:00I knew that I was going to need some help to survive.
00:03SNAP isn't just a program.
00:05For millions, it's the line between hunger and hope.
00:08It's also a $100 billion annual investment from the federal government.
00:15Dawn Pierce relied on SNAP benefits for 17 months after losing her job in 2009,
00:21during one of the toughest economic downturns in American history.
00:25SNAP benefits give eligible low-income families money to buy food
00:29at the grocery store.
00:30The relief of knowing that you can feed your child
00:37or that nobody's going to think you're a bad mom because you don't have any food.
00:43But a fridge and freezer full of groceries can also come with stares
00:47and comments at the checkout line.
00:49That scrutiny, she says, does real harm, making families feel ashamed
00:52and less likely to get the food they need,
00:55widening the barrier that already exists for many communities reliant on government assistance.
01:01Hunger isn't about laziness.
01:04It isn't about poor choices.
01:06It isn't about not wanting to just get off the couch and get a job.
01:10What Dawn didn't expect was the judgment, the shame, and the lessons in survival that would follow.
01:15And people love to say, just pull yourself up by your bootstraps.
01:19But when you're hungry and you are living in a poverty situation,
01:25you don't have boots to have straps to pull yourself up.
01:28Today, Dawn works for the nonprofit Hunger-Free America,
01:32helping other families navigate SNAP and turn their survival stories into advocacy,
01:37starting with the first step, applying for benefits.
01:40You can't do anything if you're hungry.
01:43And if we don't address hunger and its root causes, every other system in our lives fail.
01:49SNAP is designed to reach families in poverty, according to the USDA.
01:5473% of households that use SNAP have an income at or below the poverty line.
01:5986% of all benefits go to the poorest families.
02:03More than half go to those making less than half of the poverty level.
02:06In 2024, SNAP fed an average of 41.7 million Americans every month.
02:13Federal spending reached nearly $100 billion, with benefits averaging just $187 per person.
02:20Each month, a little more than $2,200 annually.
02:24That's well below the average per capita grocery spending of $3,168 that year, according to the USDA.
02:32But while SNAP can be a lifeline, it comes with red tape, restrictions, and rules that can sometimes leave families stranded.
02:40Many states are adding soda, candy, and energy drinks to the list of items SNAP recipients can't buy with their SNAP funds,
02:47along with hot food, personal care products, alcohol, and tobacco.
02:52Nebraska was first, leading the nation on how federal aid is spent.
02:56Now, when SNAP recipients reach for an ice-cold Coca-Cola or a monster to get through the day, they have to pay out of pocket.
03:04On May 19th, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins stood alongside Nebraska Governor Jim Pillen to sign a first-in-the-nation waiver.
03:12Probably 10 to 15 years ago, we started talking in the nutrition field about limiting SNAP purchases.
03:20In a statement to Straight Arrow News, a USDA spokesperson says it's a move that means billions of taxpayer dollars per year
03:27that have long-subsidized unhealthy food and beverages will start to be preserved for healthier options.
03:34Governor Pillen and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services say the move is aimed at encouraging healthier choices
03:40and fighting obesity, especially among children and families.
03:44Pillen points to a University of Nebraska study that found 7 in 10 Nebraskans are now obese.
03:50Kate Bauer, an associate professor in nutritional sciences at the University of Michigan, says
03:55the call for change comes from limited research comparing SNAP programs with and without restrictions.
04:02While we see some reductions in the amount of sugar-sweetened beverages purchased when people get, you know,
04:11look-alike SNAP benefits with restrictions, overall it does not change their intake of sugar-sweetened beverages
04:19and it doesn't change health outcomes.
04:21Bauer says the research really shows that families who use SNAP will still spend their own money on food,
04:27including on items like soda.
04:29She argues if government officials really cared about health,
04:33initiatives would focus on changing food culture rather than cutting SNAP.
04:37It's putting the burden on individuals and it's putting that burden of not having access to certain products on the individuals who are the most nutritionally and socially and physically vulnerable.
04:52Robert Parleberg, an associate in Harvard's sustainability science program, says there is limited data to indicate whether this approach will meet the government's intended goals,
05:02because the USDA has denied requests from states to run tests that would measure what happens if SNAP can't be used to buy sugary beverages.
05:10However, this waiver acts like a pilot program to collect missing data.
05:15It would be much better to find an entire state or a significant portion of a state and test out this speculation, this hypothesis,
05:24that health would improve if you removed sugary beverages from foods eligible for purchase.
05:29He says without those studies, there's no real way to know what impact a restriction might have.
05:35But what is clear, he says, is the obesity rate.
05:39Historically, sugar-sweetened beverages have been a leading contributor to excessive sugar consumption and the obesity crisis in the United States.
05:49I mean, currently, 40 percent of American adults are clinically obese.
05:53Parleberg says SNAP's expansion over the years has helped reduce hunger across the nation, which is a success worth recognizing.
06:01You wouldn't have to undo that progress by removing a single unhealthy product category from the foods that you can purchase with these benefits.
06:10I wouldn't reduce the size of the benefit.
06:12I would just restrict, in this one case, foods that can be purchased with the benefit.
06:17Nebraska isn't alone.
06:19Other states, including Arkansas, Indiana, Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Louisiana, and Iowa,
06:25have also partnered with the USDA to block SNAP users from buying sugary drinks.
06:30The American Beverage Association, which represents major players in the industry, has been vocal in opposing these waivers.
06:37And while officials blame sugary drinks for rising obesity rates, the industry pushes back, pointing to a 42 percent drop in beverage calories over the last decade
06:47and claiming 60 percent of drinks Americans now buy contain zero sugar.
06:52SNAP reform remains in the hands of state governors and the USDA, but could be up to Capitol Hill if Congress is able to move forward what's commonly referred to as the Farm Bill.
07:02Congress is paralyzed on so many things, especially now nutrition policy, because the SNAP program has always been a part of the Farm Bill, and we don't have a Farm Bill.
07:15U.S. lawmakers are supposed to approve a legislative package roughly every five years to help shape the nation's food and agricultural industries.
07:24It's a package that affects what Americans grow, what they eat, and who can afford it.
07:29But for the last three years, Congress has been deadlocked on pushing a new bill forward.
07:34Harlberg says until legislation is passed, local and state governments will work with the USDA to test if these restrictions improve public health.
07:43Secretary Rollins has said this is a part of our effort to make America healthy again.
07:49And maybe eventually, if these pilots provide dramatic results, maybe Congress will go along.
07:56Each state with a USDA-approved waiver will officially ban the purchase of sugary and energy drinks with SNAP benefits starting in 2026.
08:05Read more by downloading the Straight Arrow News mobile app or visit san.com.
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