WASHINGTON — Continuing to promote and move forward the messaging of the new Dietary Guidelines and the Make America Healthy Again initiatives, a plan for using strategic private sector partnerships to advance the message of healthy food and eating was recently announced.
U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke L. Rollins, along with Robert F. Kennedy Jr., health and human services secretary; and Dr. Ben Carson, USDA’s national nutrition advisor, jointly addressed the importance of utilizing partnerships in educating the public about the importance of the message contained in the new Dietary Guidelines for Americans.
Rollins also provided an update on the upcoming Stocking Standards final rule. This rule “holds that any retailer interested in accepting Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits accountable to a higher minimum standard of staple food stocking requirements,” the release noted.
She also announced four new SNAP restriction waivers for Kansas, Nevada, Ohio and Wyoming.
“The ‘Make America Healthy Again’ movement has brought together the private sector, including retailers, the medical community, farmers, ranchers, producers, and the media to play a key role in encouraging healthier families and healthier communities,” Rollins said, adding that the recent announcement, “… not only invites the private sector to educate on the importance of the DGAs, but also adds four new states to SNAP restriction waivers, and highlights the impending rule that will increase the number of real food options retailers must carry.”
“Real food is the foundation of healthier families and healthier communities,” she added.
“If retailers take taxpayer dollars, they must put real food on their shelves,” Kennedy said. “SNAP exists to nourish vulnerable Americans — not bankroll the products driving our chronic disease crisis. Today, we are putting nutrition back at the center of SNAP and giving millions of families greater access to real food.”
“For over 12 years, minimum stocking standards in retailers have been debated,” Carson added. “This impending rule is practical, doable, and will provide families with new, more healthful choices no matter where they shop. Complimenting this are four new restriction waivers, making certain highly processed junk food is not eligible for purchase with taxpayer-funded SNAP benefits”
The American Egg Board also notes that the new SNAP stocking standards place a focus on the healthy benefit of protein, and that eggs are a perfect source.
“We applaud the USDA’s leadership in prioritizing real food for American families, especially those who rely on SNAP benefits,” Emily Metz, AEB president and CEO, said. “Eggs are exactly what this effort is about — accessible, nutrient-dense protein that should be available to everyone, no matter where they shop.”
“When retailers are held to higher stocking standards for real food, families gain better options and eggs can play the role they should in supporting healthy eating across the country,” Metz added.
AEB also noted that it will be active in supporting the announced strategic partnership collaborations and, “amplifying the importance of eating real food like eggs as part of healthy diets. As USDA moves forward with these initiatives, eggs will continue to provide families with versatile, complete protein that fits into healthy eating at every meal.”
For groups seeking to be a strategic partner, email USDA at DietaryGuidelines@usda.gov for additional information.
