A push to ban sugary drinks, candy and more from the U.S. program that helps low-income families pay for nutritious food has been tried before — but it may soon get a boost from new Trump administration officials. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the newly confirmed health and human services secretary, and Brooke Rollins, the new agriculture secretary, have both signaled that they favor stripping such treats from SNAP, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Kennedy has been most vocal, calling for the government to stop allowing the nearly $113 billion program that serves about 42 million Americans to use benefits to pay for “ soda or processed foods.” “The one place that I would say that we need to really change policy is the SNAP program and food stamps and in school lunches,” Kennedy told Fox News host Laura Ingraham last week. “There, the federal government in many cases is paying for it. And we shouldn’t be subsidizing people to eat poison.” In one of her first interviews after being confirmed, Rollins said she looked forward to working with Kennedy on the issue. “When a taxpayer is putting money into SNAP, are they OK with us using their tax dollars to feed really bad food and sugary drinks to children who perhaps need something more nutritious?” Rollins said. “These are all massive questions we’re going to be asking and working on in the coming months and years.” But removing certain foods from SNAP — known for years as food stamps — isn’t as simple as it sounds. The program is run by the USDA, not HHS, and is administered through individual states. It is authorized by the federal Food and Nutrition Act of 2008, which says SNAP benefits can be used for “any food or food product intended for human consumption,” except alcohol, tobacco and hot foods, including those prepared for immediate consumption. Excluding any foods would require Congress to change the law — or for states to get waivers that would let them restrict purchases, said Katie Bergh, a senior policy analyst for the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a nonpartisan research group. Over the past 20 years, lawmakers in several states have proposed stopping SNAP from paying for bottled water, soda, chips, ice cream, decorated cakes and “luxury meats” like steak. “None of those requests have ever been approved under either Republican or Democratic presidents,” Bergh said. In the past, Agriculture Department officials rejected the waivers, saying in a 2007 paper that no clear standards exist to define foods “as good or bad, or healthy or not healthy.” In addition, the agency said restrictions would be difficult to implement, complicated and costly. And they might not change recipients’ food purchases or reduce conditions such as obesity. Anti-hunger advocates point to research that shows SNAP recipients are no more likely than other low-income Americans to buy sugary drinks or snack foods. And they say that limiting food choices undermines the autonomy and dignity of people who receive, on average, about $187 per month — or about $6.16 per day, according to latest figures. “This is just another way to cut benefits,” said Gina Plata-Nino, a deputy director at the Food Research and Action Center, a nonprofit advocacy group. “It’s like, how do we restrict people more? How do we […]