Trump wants to replace grocery aid for seniors with "MAHA food boxes" [View all]

Source: msn/CBS News

11h


President Trump's proposed budget for next year could include big changes for a small food aid program that helps low-income senior citizens supplement their diets. Under the plan, funding for the program — called the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP) — would be cut, and seniors instead would receive what the Trump administration is calling "MAHA food boxes" filled with products sourced directly from farmers.

The food boxes — whose name stems from Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s pledge to "Make America Healthy Again" — could eventually also be rolled out to either "supplant or complement current USDA programs," the U.S. Department of Agriculture told CBS MoneyWatch in an email. The agency didn't disclose what other government programs could integrate use of the MAHA food boxes. The USDA administers the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, more commonly known as food stamps. The agency also oversees other food aid programs such as Women, Infants and Children, which is aimed at pregnant women and kids, as well as the National School Lunch program.

"Unlike the current approach using food banks, which provide those in need with shelf-stable foods that are high in sodium and other harmful ingredients, MAHA boxes would be filled with commodities sourced from domestic farmers and given directly to American households," the Trump budget proposal notes. The CSFP helps about 730,000 low-income seniors annually through its $389 million budget, according to the USDA. By comparison, the food-stamp program spent about $100 billion last year to provide assistance to 41 million Americans, according to the USDA.

"We have no details"

The CSFP is essential for low-income seniors who are struggling to put food on the table, said George Matysik, executive director of Share Food Program, a nonprofit in Philadelphia. He expressed concern about the Trump administration's plans to replace the CSFP with food boxes, noting the logistical complexity of getting perishable food from farmers directly to older Americans. Another question is whether the foods included in the food boxes would meet the needs of seniors who often need shelf-stable foods because many struggle to get to the store, Matysik said.

Read more: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/trump-wants-to-replace-grocery-aid-for-seniors-with-maha-food-boxes/ar-AA1Em6Q2