Related video above: News coverage from when the SNAP restrictions on soda and candy were being debated in 2025.

(NEXSTAR) – Nearly a dozen more states are adding restrictions to SNAP purchases in the months ahead.

The changes are part of a growing movement to shift SNAP spending to healthier options – or as the Trump administration describes it, “real food.”

Over the past several months, states have been rolling out new restrictions on what SNAP dollars can be spent on. In most cases, the new policies ban spending on soda, energy drinks and/or candy.

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Eight more states – Arkansas, Colorado, Missouri, Montana, Ohio, North Dakota, South Carolina, Virginia – are adding similar rules in 2026. Colorado originally had an earlier deadline to make changes, but the target implementation date was pushed back to October, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Kansas, Nevada and Wyoming will be rolling out their own restrictions in the next two years.

By 2028, nearly half of states will have rules on the books banning SNAP recipients from purchasing sugary drinks or certain sweets with their benefits. (See the map below for details state-by-state.)

SNAP, or the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, helps low- and no-income Americans afford groceries by loading a debit card with a monthly benefit amount. There have long been restrictions on what SNAP recipients can use their benefits to buy (no alcohol or tobacco, for example).

Soon, additional restrictions will also apply to retailers. The USDA, which administers the SNAP program, recently announced it would require SNAP-authorized retailers to carry more varieties of nutritious food. Starting in the fall, retailers will need to carry seven types of items across four food categories: protein, grains, dairy and produce.

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“SNAP authorized retailers accept over $90 billion a year, or $236 million a day, in taxpayer dollars—USDA is making sure they’re actually in the business of selling food,” said Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins in a press release.

The agency said more details on how the new rules work would be forthcoming.

SNAP, formerly the Food Stamp Program, helps approximately 1 in 8 Americans afford groceries.

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