Recent efforts to protect the structure and funding of SNAP, improve benefit adequacy, and establish needed flexibilities during the COVID-19 pandemic were made possible by years of advocacy. Today, the same level of enthusiasm is needed to further strengthen the public health impacts of SNAP. We advocate to protect and build on proven strategies, including by calling on policymakers to reduce barriers to access, strengthen nutrition incentives, and create healthier retail food environments.

• Nutrition Security and the Farm Bill
• SNAP Access and Utilization
• SNAP Purchasing Power for Nutritious Food
• SNAP and the Food Retail Environment

Strategies to maximize the public health impacts of SNAP should be led by the communities most impacted by program changes. Since 2018, CSPI has worked across the country to engage SNAP participants and stakeholders on the development of SNAP policy priorities based on the communities’ needs and priorities. These state policy agendas help shape CSPI’s federal SNAP advocacy.

The following resources detail the Healthy SNAP community engagement work that has been completed across different states:

• Colorado: Colorado Listening Project: Perspectives of SNAP Participants and College Students to Maximize Nutrition Security (2022)

• Florida: The Florida Project: Recommendations for Healthy Eating SNAP Pilot Projects (2022)

• Michigan: Strengthening SNAP on a Dime (2022)

• Ohio: Recommendations for Strengthening Access to Nutrition through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) (2022)

• Texas: Statewide Discussions around SNAP & Double Up Food Bucks: Focus Groups and Regional Convenings (2022)

• Arkansas: Engaging Arkansas Stakeholders to Improve SNAP’s Public Health Impact (2021)

• Iowa: Strategies to Improve Healthy Eating in SNAP: An Iowa Perspective (2021)

• North Carolina: Recommendations for a Healthy Eating SNAP Pilot in North Carolina (2021)

• Massachusetts: Recommendations for a Healthy Eating SNAP Pilot in Massachusetts (2020)

   

While SNAP has many positive public health impacts, most participants still report some type of barrier to achieving a healthy diet. We encourage research to evaluate existing policies and the potential of additional strategies to facilitate access to nutritious foods that meet participants’ needs.

In polling and focus groups, SNAP participants have expressed interest in numerous strategies, including strengthening nutrition incentives and ensuring healthy options are available and promoted in SNAP retailers. Yet  rigorous evaluation and research on these strategies is needed. Researchers and policymakers should consider prioritizing well-designed SNAP pilots informed by the best available evidence and input from SNAP participants.

• Strengthening Healthy Food Access through SNAP: Building the Evidence