{"id":2417553,"date":"2025-03-29T20:08:01","date_gmt":"2025-03-30T00:08:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/rfk-jr-moves-to-cut-soda-from-list-of-approved-food-stamp-purchases-industry-turns-on-him\/"},"modified":"2025-03-29T20:09:32","modified_gmt":"2025-03-30T00:09:32","slug":"rfk-jr-moves-to-cut-soda-from-list-of-approved-food-stamp-purchases-industry-turns-on-him","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/rfk-jr-moves-to-cut-soda-from-list-of-approved-food-stamp-purchases-industry-turns-on-him\/","title":{"rendered":"RFK Jr. Moves to Cut Soda from List of Approved Food Stamp Purchases &#8211; Industry Turns on Him"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">36<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Frfk-jr-moves-to-cut-soda-from-list-of-approved-food-stamp-purchases-industry-turns-on-him%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2417553&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Robert F. Kennedy Jr.,the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, is advocating for a ban on the purchase of soda with SNAP benefits, aiming to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/exclusive-gop-lawmakers-blast-return-of-swampy-slush-fund-settlements-under-bidens-doj\/\" title=\"EXCLUSIVE: GOP Lawmakers Blast Return Of Swampy \u2018Slush Fund\u2019 Settlements Under Biden\u2019s DOJ\">direct taxpayer dollars<\/a> towards healthier foods. During a campaign event in West Virginia, Governor Patrick morrisey announced his intention to seek permission from the USDA to include soda on the banned items list. Kennedy encourages other governors to follow suit, suggesting that eliminating soda subsidies for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/white-house-releases-list-of-president-trumps-accomplishments-and-it-is-historic\/\" title=\"White House Releases ... of President Trump\u2019s Accomplishments \u2013  And It Is Historic!\">low-income families<\/a> is a necessary step towards <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/unemployment-rate-rises-for-first-time-in-a-year\/\" title=\"Unemployment Rate Rises for First Time in a Year\">improving public health<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Critics of the proposal argue that it is a paternalistic approach to food choices and does not address the underlying issue of cost disparities between healthy and unhealthy foods. Valerie Imbruce from Washington College highlighted that cheaper junk foods, supported by government subsidies, lead to unhealthy dietary choices.<\/p>\n<p>The soda industry has expressed dissatisfaction, with representatives claiming that soda is not the sole cause of obesity and criticizing the focus on their products.Additionally, some experts caution that a ban could <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">negatively impact local businesses<\/a> and shoppers in West Virginia. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins stated she looks forward to reviewing Morrisey&#8217;s request, while kennedy&#8217;s advisor noted that multiple governors are considering similar actions against soda purchases with SNAP benefits.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>If HHS Secretary and healthy food advocate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has his way, SNAP will stand for Soda Not Allowed Period.<\/p>\n<p>On Friday, Kennedy brought his &ldquo;Make America Healthy Again&rdquo; campaign to West Virginia, where Republican Gov. Patrick Morrisey announced that he will be seeking permission from the Department of Agriculture to put soda on the list of items that cannot be bought through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, often referred to by its former name of food stamps, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/health\/2025\/03\/28\/soda-ban-food-stamps-rfk-west-virginia\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Washington Post<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Taxpayer dollars should be targeted toward nutritious foods,&rdquo; Morrisey said.<\/p>\n<p>Kennedy issued a full-throated request for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/bidenomics-food-stamps-work-capable-recipients-cost-taxpayers-billions-watchdog-reports\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">states<\/a> to copy Morrisey&rsquo;s lead.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I urge every Governor to follow West Virginia&rsquo;s lead and submit a waiver to the USDA to remove soda from SNAP,&rdquo; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/rfk-jr-hits-top-food-ceos-ultimatum-junk-ingredients-food\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Kennedy<\/a> said in a statement, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.newsweek.com\/rfk-jr-issues-soda-directive-snap-west-virginia-2052306\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Newsweek<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"stnvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\tdocument.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\", function() { \t\t\t\t\tfunction loadScript(src) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst script=document.createElement(\"script\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.src=src; \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.async=true; \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.body.appendChild(script); \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\tfunction findPreviousParagraph(selector, x) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst targetElement=document.querySelector(selector); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!targetElement) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Target element not found.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Get all <\/p>\n<p> elements in order as they appear in the document \t\t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphs=Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(\"p\"));  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the index of the last <\/p>\n<p> before the target element \t\t\t\t\t\tlet targetIndex=paragraphs.findIndex(p=> p.compareDocumentPosition(targetElement) & Node.DOCUMENT_POSITION_PRECEDING);  \t\t\t\t\t\tif (targetIndex===-1 || targetIndex <x) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Not enough paragraphs before the target element.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\treturn paragraphs[targetIndex - x]; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Set up IntersectionObserver \t\t\t\t\tfunction observeElement(element) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!element) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst observer=new IntersectionObserver( \t\t\t\t\t\t\t(entries)=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tentries.forEach(entry=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tif (entry.isIntersecting) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log(\"Paragraph is now visible:\", entry.target.textContent.trim()); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tloadScript(\"https:\/\/embed.sendtonews.com\/player3\/embedcode.js?fk=s28Az7AY\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.disconnect(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t}, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t{ threshold: 0.5 } \/\/ Adjust threshold as needed \t\t\t\t\t\t);  \t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.observe(element); \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the 1st paragraph before #stnvideo and observe it \t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphToObserve=findPreviousParagraph(\"#stnvideo\", 2); \t\t\t\t\tobserveElement(paragraphToObserve); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;If there&rsquo;s one thing we can agree on, it should be eliminating taxpayer-funded soda subsidies for lower income kids. I look forward to inviting every Governor who submits a waiver to come celebrate with me at the White House this fall,&rdquo; he said.<\/p>\n<p>Waging a SNAP war on soda is opposed by Valerie Imbruce, director of the Center for Environment and Society at Washington College.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Controlling how the poor eat is a paternalistic response to a problem that is not based in SNAP recipients&rsquo; inability to make good decisions about healthy foods, it is a problem of the price differential in choosing healthy or junk foods,&rdquo; she said.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Soda and candy are much cheaper and more calorie dense than 100 percent fruit juices or prebiotic non-artificially sweetened carbonated beverages, thanks to price supports and subsidies by the federal government to support a U.S. sugar industry,&rdquo; she added.<\/p>\n<p>The soda industry was also miffed, the Post noted.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">RFK Jr. &ldquo;I want to commend Governor Morrisey &hellip; for his courage.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;These legislators who are pushing this bill, all of them are getting calls every day from the big soda companies &hellip; and the fake food companies.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;re not eating food. We&rsquo;re eating food-like substances.&rdquo; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/ncl0v8I5DG\">pic.twitter.com\/ncl0v8I5DG<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Holden Culotta (@Holden_Culotta) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Holden_Culotta\/status\/1905680476473622869?\">March 28, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;What&rsquo;s unhelpful about this whole conversation is that soda is not driving obesity,&rdquo; Merideth Potter, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/senate-confirms-kathleen-hicks-as-deputy-defense-secretary\/\" title=\"Senate Confirms Kathleen Hicks as Deputy Defense ...\">senior vice president<\/a> at the American Beverage Association, the industry&rsquo;s lobbying group, reacted. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve become this easy punching bag.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Seth DiStefano, of the leftist West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy, said a ban on SNAP paying for soda could force shoppers out of the state and lead to store closures.<\/p>\n<p>Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins is the one who makes the call on SNAP.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I look forward to receiving Governor Morrisey&rsquo;s SNAP pilot request and will work swiftly to make certain West Virginia is equipped with the technical assistance and expertise to move forward,&rdquo; Rollins said in a statement.<\/p>\n<p>Calley Means, a senior adviser at the White House, said 15 governors are talking with Kennedy about removing soda from the list of products <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/trump-effect-6-million-off-food-stamps-since-inauguration-day\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">SNAP<\/a> funds can buy.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;re not saying anyone can&rsquo;t drink Coke,&rdquo; Means said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re saying no government subsidies for Coke.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If HHS Secretary and health advocate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has his way, SNAP will mean Soda Not Allowed Period. On Friday, Kennedy took his \u201cMake America Healthy Again\u201d campaign to West Virginia, where Republican Governor Patrick Morrisey stated he would request permission from the Department of Agriculture to ban soda from being purchased with Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, previously known as food stamps, according to The Washington Post. \u201cTaxpayer dollars should be directed towards nutritious foods,\u201d Morrisey remarked. Kennedy strongly encouraged other governors to follow suit: \u201cI urge every Governor to emulate West Virginia\u2019s example and submit a waiver to the USDA to exclude soda from SNAP,\u201d he said in a statement reported by Newsweek.<\/p>\n<p>Kennedy emphasized that eliminating taxpayer-funded soda subsidies for low-income children should be a shared goal among all parties involved. He expressed eagerness to invite any governor who submits such a waiver for a celebration at the White House this fall. However, Valerie Imbruce, director of the Center for Environment and Society at Washington College, opposed this initiative: \u201cControlling how low-income individuals eat is paternalistic and overlooks that their choices are often limited by price differences between healthy foods and junk food.\u201d She pointed out that sodas are cheaper and more calorie-dense than healthier options due in part to federal subsidies supporting the U.S. sugar industry.<\/p>\n<p>The soda industry also expressed discontent with these developments; RFK Jr. praised Governor Morrisey for his bravery in pursuing this legislation despite pressure from large beverage companies: &#8220;We\u2019re not eating real food; we\u2019re consuming food-like substances.&#8221; Merideth Potter of the American Beverage Association countered that blaming soda for obesity is misguided: &#8220;Soda has become an easy target.&#8221; Seth DiStefano from the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy warned that banning SNAP purchases of soda could drive shoppers away from local stores.<\/p>\n<p>Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins will ultimately decide on SNAP changes: &#8220;I look forward to reviewing Governor Morrisey\u2019s request,&#8221; she stated. Calley Means, a senior adviser at the White House, mentioned that 15 governors are discussing removing soda from eligible SNAP purchases but clarified they aren&#8217;t prohibiting people from drinking it\u2014just eliminating government subsidies for it<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2417554,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/RFK-Jr-3.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[34205,52480,52479,32458,52478],"class_list":["post-2417553","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-food-stamps","tag-industry-response","tag-nutrition-policy","tag-rfk-jr","tag-soda-ban"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/RFK-Jr-3.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2417553","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2417553"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2417553\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2417557,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2417553\/revisions\/2417557"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2417554"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2417553"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2417553"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2417553"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}