WASHINGTON, D.C. (LOOTPRESS) – In a recent interview with conservative podcaster Benny Johnson, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins outlined her plan to restrict the use of food stamps for purchasing sugary drinks and unhealthy snacks.
The initiative is part of a broader effort to support the “Make America Healthy Again” (MAHA) movement, led by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Rollins emphasized the need for reform, noting that the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), commonly known as food stamps, is the largest part of the USDA’s budget, amounting to hundreds of billions of dollars.
“People on food stamps—those with the least among us—are taking that and spending it, because they can, on Cokes, on sugary snacks, on candy, and that has to change,” she said.
Rollins explained that implementing these changes requires cooperation with state governments.
Currently, states must seek waivers to regulate the types of food that can be purchased with SNAP benefits.
“I’m working with more than a dozen governors right now,” she said. “What has to happen is the states themselves have to seek a waiver, and then we at USDA grant the waiver.”
In West Virginia, legislators are working to do just that.
House Bill 2350, introduced by Delegate Adams Burkhammer (R-Lewis), is currently in the House Health and Human Resources Committee.
HB 2350 would allow the state secretary of the Department of Human Services to request a waiver from the USDA which would prohibit the use of food stamps to purchase candy and soft drinks.
Rollins also highlighted her collaboration with Secretary Kennedy and members of Congress to explore federal-level solutions.
“We have a population with a chronic disease problem, with an obesity problem—whatever USDA can do to help on that, we are committed to doing,” Rollins stated.
