Louisiana SNAP recipients may find themselves involuntarily giving up soda and candy for Lent this year, as new restrictions on what the food assistance can be used to purchase take effect on Ash Wednesday.

In announcing the changes, state health officials said the timing immediately after Mardi Gras was intentional. The waiver allowing Louisiana to place the restrictions on the federal program commonly known as food stamps was approved last year by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. It was set to begin Jan. 1, but the state received approval for the delay.

“You can still buy soda, you can still buy candy, but you cannot use your SNAP card to do it beginning February 18,” said Camille Conaway, the executive director for economic independence at the Louisiana Department of Health. “So we are going to enjoy our candy and our soda and our energy drinks all the way from Mardi Gras, and then we’re collectively going on a really great diet.”

What qualifies as a soft drink or candy?

Roughly 25,000 products will no longer be eligible for purchase with SNAP funds, according to a product list commissioned by the state and compiled by NielsenIQ, a consumer research company.

Under Louisiana’s waiver, “soft drinks” are defined as any carbonated, non-alcoholic beverage containing high-fructose corn syrup or artificial sweeteners, such as regular or diet sodas. Flavored carbonated waters, such as LaCroix, remain eligible, as do beverages containing milk or milk substitutes like soy or almond milk, and drinks made up of at least 50% fruit or vegetable juice.

Energy drinks containing added stimulants — including fortified caffeine, taurine, guarana or glucuronolactone — are also no longer allowed. That category includes popular brands such as Red Bull and Monster. Coffee and tea remain eligible, as do caffeinated beverages that do not include added stimulants.

Candy is defined as a sugar- or sweetener-based product combined with ingredients such as chocolate, fruit or nuts and sold in bars, drops or pieces. Chocolate bars, gummies and hard candies are excluded, while protein bars and baking ingredients such as chocolate chips or toffee bits are still allowed.

A wide-reaching program

Louisiana is one of about a dozen states that have requested waivers from the USDA to restrict certain SNAP purchases, part of a growing movement and a cornerstone of the ‘Make America Healthy Again’ movement put forth by federal health secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.

Each state has slightly different rules for what is no longer allowed. For instance, West Virginia restricts sugary beverages but not candy. Texas defines sweetened drinks as having five grams or more of added sugar or any artificial sweetener. Missouri added “prepared desserts” to its list of ineligible foods. 

Nearly 750,000 people in Louisiana — about one in five households — use SNAP, which provides monthly benefits loaded onto a debit-style card that can be used at most grocery retailers. Benefit amounts vary based on household size, income and expenses such as housing.

The average monthly benefit in Louisiana is $377, totaling roughly $1.78 billion per year. The program is entirely federally funded, though the state covers half of the $337 million in administrative costs. That state share is expected to increase to 75% next year under the federal “One Big Beautiful Bill” championed by President Donald Trump.

Health goals, but no rotisserie chicken

State officials said the changes are part of a broader effort to promote healthier eating. When the restrictions were first announced, Gov. Jeff Landry said the state would seek approval to allow SNAP recipients to purchase rotisserie chicken — a prepared food item typically excluded from the program but touted by the state as healthy, cheap and good for feeding a large family.

That request has not yet been approved by the USDA, according to Louisiana Health Secretary Bruce Greenstein.

The USDA doesn’t have a specific timeline for approval or denial, according to a spokesperson. States can make a new request with additional information if a request is denied. 

LDH is also expanding a pilot called the Louisiana Carrot Program, which offers SNAP users 30 cents back for every dollar spent on fresh fruits and vegetables. More than 71,000 people are currently enrolled in 11 parishes, and the program is expected to expand to New Orleans and Baton Rouge later this year.

‘Some confusion’

SNAP is an anti-hunger program at its core, and nearly 830,000 people in Louisiana are food insecure, meaning they don’t have access to enough or adequately healthy food. SNAP’s effectiveness has long been tied to the freedom it gives families and the discreet way benefits are used at the checkout counter, and it’s unclear how changing that might affect shopping habits.

“What does this look like at the register when people are coming up with products, thinking they’re covered, and they’re not?” said Megan Knapp, a public health professor and researcher focused on food policy at Xavier University. “I think there’s going to be some confusion.”

Knapp, who is developing a research proposal to study whether SNAP purchase restrictions actually reduce consumption of sugary beverages, said some retailers have also raised concerns. Smaller stores, in particular, may find it burdensome to manage constantly changing eligibility rules and could opt out of the program altogether.

Marcus Coleman, a public health researcher at Tulane University, said federal cuts to SNAP education funding in September undercut efforts to help families actually eat healthier.

“We’re telling people to buy healthier foods, but what if they don’t necessarily have the knowledge about how to prepare certain things?” Coleman said.

In rural areas, sometimes candy or a soft drink is what’s available, said Coleman, who grew up in Tensas Parish.

“My town has a Dollar General. My grandmother has to travel 13 miles to the next grocery store,” Coleman said. “You need things in between to get by.”

Greenstein said that SNAP has always come with limits.

“It’s a big change, but today you can’t buy a six-pack of beer, you can’t buy paper towels,” he said. “There are things the program has never paid for.”

The waiver banning soda, candy and energy drinks is approved for two years. During that time, the state is required to collect data and regularly report on whether the changes lead to measurable shifts in purchasing behavior and health outcomes.