State’s SNAP Soda Ban Goes Into Effect Jan. 1

West Virginians who use the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) will no longer be able to purchase some sugary drinks including soda starting Thursday, Jan. 1.

According to data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture close to 300,000 West Virginians – one third of which are children – rely on SNAP benefits. 

The push to ban sodas was first announced when U.S. Sec. of Health Robert F. Kennedy visited the state in March. At the time Gov. Patrick Morrisey announced his “Four Pillars of a Healthy West Virginia,” including:

• Clean up the food
• Find Purpose, Find Health
• Move Your Body, Change Your Life
• Reward Healthy Choices

In a video published in May announcing the formal submission of a SNAP waiver to enact the ban, Morrisey said he wanted to make the “N” in SNAP stand for nutrition.

“We’re promoting healthy bundles, that’s fresh produce and lean meat and good opportunities for some hot foods for West Virginians for some products that you’ve never been able to have before,” Morrisey said. “This is the way we have to do it, we have to get West Virginia healthy again. I’m really appreciative of Sec. Brook Rollins and RFK for what they’re doing to take on these big fights and to help really move the needle in terms of going after the disease states we have in our country. And certainly in West Virginia we can make big progress going after obesity and diabetes and other health conditions.”

The SNAP announcement followed another step in the governor’s health push, his signing of House Bill 2354 into law, which prohibits food dyes in school lunches and in food items for sale in West Virginia. A federal judge has temporarily blocked the enforcement of the food dye ban while a lawsuit brought by dye manufacturers is decided. 

Morrisey has also tried to enact new work and education requirements for SNAP recipients, but a bill introduced in the Senate during the 2025 regular session of the West Virginia legislature failed to become law.

Despite community pushback, similar federal changes were enacted last month.