Arlington, Va. – Today, FMI – The Food Industry Association released a statement in response to announcements from federal and state agencies, including U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary (USDA) Brooke Rollins; Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.; Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz; Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders; and Indiana Governor Mike Braun, regarding Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) state waiver requests.
Statement from FMI President and CEO Leslie G. Sarasin:
“FMI and our member companies support the goal of encouraging customers to utilize SNAP dollars to purchase nutrient dense foods. We have found that the best results are those that make resources available – like dietitian-supported recipes or curated shopping experiences and programs that enhance their ability to economically purchase fruits and vegetables and dairy while recognizing the limitations of the current average $6-per-person-per-day SNAP benefit.
“While pilots and waivers may have an important role, it is critical not to create chaos and confusion both in individual stores and through a jumbled mixture of varying state requirements – creating new program inefficiencies, longer grocery store lines and customer frustration.
“USDA knows, Congress knows and the American people know that we have to work together if we are going to prevent hunger with a $6/day SNAP benefit for the children, seniors and disabled people who depend on it. We support eliminating overpayments by state agencies and organized criminal fraud in the program, updating 15-year-old USDA data on SNAP purchase patterns and maximizing the dollars we have available for those Americans who truly need the help.
“We look forward to working with Secretary Rollins and the USDA staff, governors, and state agencies on our shared interest in ensuring SNAP operates as efficiently as possible and that it reaches its intended recipients without creating confusion, disruption or waste.”
