Missouri Cuts Funding for Produce Incentive Program as SNAP Restrictions Advance

Missouri’s 2024 budget eliminates $2 million in state contributions to the Double Up Food Bucks program, which matches SNAP benefits for fresh produce. The same budget advances SNAP restrictions that will ban purchases of candy, soda, sugary drinks, prepared desserts and other ultra-processed foods beginning Oct 1. The dual action has sparked debate over the state’s nutrition-assistance approach.

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The $2 million cut is part of a $50.7 billion state budget. Double Up Food Bucks operates at more than 70 stores and serves over 300,000 Missouri SNAP households. Similar restrictions exist in Texas, Florida, Oklahoma, Utah and Colorado.

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Key actors include Governor Mike Kehoe, Rep. Ian Mackey (D-St. Louis), CEO Kevin Thompson, founder Drew Powers, and financial-literacy instructor Alex Beene.

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Governor Kehoe praised Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins for a waiver supporting the “Make America Healthy Again” initiative and framed the SNAP limits as a federal partnership to improve nutrition. Rep. Mackey said the budget cuts undermine earlier efforts to help low-income families buy healthier foods such as broccoli.

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Drew Powers said the budget’s primary aim is to reduce SNAP funding, warning of downstream effects on farmers, delivery drivers and Medicaid costs. Kevin Thompson noted that cutting produce-incentive funding conflicts with the Make America Healthy Again goals. Alex Beene warned that restricting processed foods while eliminating produce incentives sends a mixed message, potentially worsening nutrition and straining markets.

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State officials say Double Up Food Bucks will continue with federal and private funds, but no timeline is set for restoring state contributions or measuring the impact of the upcoming restrictions.

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• “The real goal was less funding for SNAP, period,” — Drew Powers, Founder, Powers Financial Group

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• “Cutting funding for nutritious food programs seems completely at odds with the MAHA [Make America Healthy Again] movement. Eliminating provisions that help families purchase fresh fruits and vegetables flies in the face of the idea of building a healthier America,” — Kevin Thompson, CEO, 9i Capital Group

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• “We are incredibly thankful for Secretary [of Agriculture Brooke] Rollins’ approval of our waiver,” — Mike Kehoe, Governor of Missouri

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• “A few weeks ago, we had a discussion about what poor people can and can’t buy and about how they shouldn’t be buying cake, they should be buying broccoli,” — Ian Mackey, State Representative (Democrat)

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Missouri will enforce the SNAP bans on Oct 1. The Double Up Food Bucks program will operate without state funding, and expansion to new sites is expected to slow pending future budget decisions.

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