Trump budget aims to cut SNAP benefits

The proposed budget issued by the Trump administration this week would slash the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) for low-income families by $17 billion next year and more than $213 billion over the coming decade, while introducing what Mick Mulvaney, director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), described as a “Blue Apron-type program.”

In The Washington Post, Mulvaney characterized the proposed initiative as allowing enrollees to “receive the food instead of ... the cash,” further explaining, “It lowers the cost to us because we can buy [at wholesale prices], whereas they have to buy it at retail. It also makes sure they’re getting nutritious food.”

Under the program, dubbed America’s Harvest Box, all households receiving more than $90 per month in benefits — 81 percent of SNAP households overall  — would receive around half their benefits in the form of government-purchased nonperishable food items, including shelf-stable milk, juice, grains, cereals, pasta, peanut butter, beans, canned meat, fruits and vegetables. The U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates that it could supply these goods at about half the cost of retail, enabling it to reduce the cost of SNAP while still feeding the needy.

For more on this story, see SNAP cuts at www.progressivegrocer.com, Store Brands' sister publication.