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.
00:24SNAP benefits give eligible low-income families money to buy food at the grocery store.
00:30The relief of knowing that you can feed your child or 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 and comments at the checkout line.
00:49That scrutiny, she says, does real harm, making families feel ashamed and 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, you don't have boots to have straps to pull yourself up.
01:28Today, Dawn works for the nonprofit Hunger-Free America, helping other families navigate SNAP
01:34and turn their survival stories into advocacy, starting with the first step, applying for benefits.
01:40You can't do anything if you're hungry.
01:42And 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 Pillan 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 Pillan 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.
03:44Pillan 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,
04:10look-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
04:45on the individuals who are the most nutritionally and socially and physically vulnerable.
04:51Robert Parleberg, an associate in Harvard's sustainability science program,
04:56says 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
05:07if SNAP can't be used to buy sugary beverages.
05:10However, this waiver acts like a pilot program to collect missing data.
05:14It would be much better to find an entire state or a significant portion of a state
05:20and test out this speculation, this hypothesis, that health would improve
05:25if 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
05:43to 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,
05:58which is a success worth recognizing.
06:00You wouldn't have to undo that progress by removing a single unhealthy product category
06:07from 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.
06:18Nebraska 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,
06:35has been vocal in opposing these waivers.
06:37And while officials blame sugary drinks for rising obesity rates, the industry pushes back,
06:43pointing 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,
06:56but could be up to Capitol Hill if Congress is able to move forward what's commonly referred to as the Farm Bill.
07:03Congress is paralyzed on so many things, especially now nutrition policy,
07:09because 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
07:20to 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
07:40to 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
08:01and energy drinks with SNAP benefits starting in 2026.
08:05Read more by downloading the Straight Arrow News mobile app or visit san.com.
08:09For Straight Arrow News, I'm Kaylee Carey.
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