- On January 1, 2026, major restrictions to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) went into effect in Indiana, Iowa, Nebraska, Utah, and West Virginia. These five states were granted waivers from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to restrict what foods can be purchased with the federal food aid benefits, such as candy and soda. Similar restrictions are set to take effect later this year in at least ten other states, though the types of restricted products differ by jurisdiction.
- On December 30, 2025, USDA published a policy memo that clarified compliance requirements for retailers serving SNAP customers, reiterating that retailers have a 90-day grace period to comply with a state’s waiver once it is effective. After the grace period, noncompliant retailers will receive a warning letter triggering a 30-day compliance window, after which noncompliance could result in a loss of the ability for the retailer to accept SNAP payments.
- However, US grocers are wary of USDA’s enforcement plan. The National Grocers Association (NGA) and National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS) sent a letter to USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS), requesting additional clarification on the policy memo and urging USDA “allow for a reasonable margin of error and to ensure that inadvertent, minor mistakes, such as those resulting from labeling changes, seasonal products, or products that fall within ambiguous or overlapping category definitions, do not trigger punitive actions.”
- The letter warns that the agency has failed to fully consider the complexities retailers face in complying with the new regulations. The letter requests a six-month period between corrective guidance and formal warnings to give retailers time to fix any outstanding issues, as well as additional guidance regarding Universal Product Code (UPC) lists and definitions.
- Keller and Heckman will continue to monitor developments related to SNAP.