Washington, D.C. – The Nationwide Grocers Affiliation (NGA) as we speak joined a coalition of main retail associations in opposing any modification to the Farm, Meals, and Nationwide Safety Act of 2026 that will impose new federal restrictions on meals eligible for buy beneath the Supplemental Diet Help Program (SNAP). In a letter despatched to congressional leaders, NGA, together with NACS, NATSO, SIGMA, and EMA, known as on lawmakers to permit ongoing state-level SNAP restriction waivers to be studied and evaluated earlier than Congress legislates a nationwide overhaul.
Collectively, the coalition’s members function storefronts the place thousands and thousands of SNAP prospects store each day, together with the impartial neighborhood grocers that account for roughly one-third of all U.S. grocery gross sales, greater than $250 billion in annual gross sales, and over a million American jobs.
“Unbiased grocers are the meals entry lifeline in hundreds of rural cities, city neighborhoods, and Foremost Streets throughout America, the place we serve SNAP prospects each single day,” stated Stephanie Johnson, NGA’s group vice chairman of presidency relations. “Congress is being requested to vote on sweeping new SNAP restrictions earlier than the 22-state pilot waivers, that are already underway, have been evaluated. On behalf of America’s impartial grocers, we are urging Congress to let the information are available in earlier than locking a complicated, expensive mandate into federal statute.”
The amendments into consideration would come with broadly outlined product classes comparable to “mushy drinks,” “soda,” “sweet, ice cream, ready desserts and comparable gadgets,” and seafood not domestically sourced, with no constant statutory definitions, making the language overly broad and obscure for compliance.
“As a substitute of piling on new purple tape via SNAP restrictions, Congress ought to let the pilots play out and work with retailers on the entrance strains earlier than making adjustments that hit thousands and thousands of households and small companies,” Johnson concluded.
To view the complete textual content of the letter, click on right here.
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In regards to the Nationwide Grocers Affiliation
NGA is the nationwide commerce affiliation representing the retail and wholesale neighborhood grocers that comprise the impartial sector of the meals distribution business. An impartial retailer is a privately owned or managed meals retail firm working quite a lot of codecs. The impartial grocery sector is accountable for about 1.2 p.c of the nation’s general financial system and is liable for producing greater than $250 billion in gross sales, 1.1 million jobs, $39 billion in wages and $36 billion in taxes. NGA members embrace retail and wholesale grocers positioned in each congressional district throughout the nation, in addition to state grocers’ associations, producers and repair suppliers.
