WASHINGTON – House Agriculture Committee Chairman David Scott and Subcommittee on Nutrition, Oversight, and Department Operations Chairwoman Jahana Hayes issued the following statement in response to USDA’s critical updates to the Thrifty Food Plan:

“The update to the Thrifty Food Plan is long overdue. We’ve seen a vast body of research with evidence that SNAP benefits are too low to support a nutritious diet for today’s low-income working families. Accordingly, Congress mandated that USDA reevaluate the Thrifty Food Plan by 2022 in the bipartisan 2018 Farm Bill. The increase coming from today’s update will help ensure that more SNAP families can have access to healthy meals,” said Chairwoman Jahana Hayes. “I’m looking forward to continuing our work with USDA as they implement Congressional programs and address hunger and food insecurity for modern-day families in need.”


Chairman David Scott added, “The 2018 Farm Bill passed with broad bipartisan support, along with record support from the full House of Representatives, which is why it’s great to see USDA implementing this Farm Bill requirement. This update to the Thrifty Food Plan ensures that SNAP benefits are based off an accurate, science-based, and up-to-date Thrifty Food Plan and will go a long way towards reducing hunger and food insecurity in this country. As always, I am grateful to see provisions with bipartisan support moving along in a productive way.