South Carolina’s SNAP cards stop paying for candy, energy drinks and sugary soft drinks on Nov. 1. The state’s Department of Social Services calls the change Healthy Food SC, a two-year project that covers every household on the program. Diet and zero-sugar sodas are not part of the ban.
What the card will not buy
The state’s Healthy Food SC page for SNAP households spells out four groups of items. Candy is sugar, honey or another sweetener combined with chocolate, fruit, nuts or other ingredients in bars, drops or pieces. Energy drinks are drinks with at least 65 milligrams of caffeine per 8 fluid ounces that are marketed as giving energy. Soft drinks are carbonated drinks sweetened or flavored with more than 5 grams of sugar or other sweeteners. Sweetened beverages are ready-to-drink products with added sugar or sweeteners.
SNAP, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, is the benefit many people still call food stamps. Starting Nov. 1, a restricted item in the cart will not go through on the EBT card. According to DSS, the register system will prompt the shopper to use another form of payment for that item, such as cash or a bank card.
What stays on the card
DSS says “diet or zero sugar soft drinks remain an allowable purchase with SNAP benefits.” ABC News 4 reported the same carve-out when the start date was pushed back. The state’s list of exclusions from the ban is longer than that. Protein bars, granola bars, baking ingredients and bakery items are not counted as candy. Coffee and tea are not counted as energy drinks. Drinks that contain milk or milk substitutes, drinks that are at least 50 percent fruit or vegetable juice with no added sweetener, infant formula, sports and rehydration drinks, carbonated water and medical-use beverages are not counted as sweetened beverages. Fruit, vegetables, grains, meat and dairy are untouched…