{"id":888430,"date":"2026-06-24T01:59:14","date_gmt":"2026-06-24T01:59:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/888430\/"},"modified":"2026-06-24T01:59:14","modified_gmt":"2026-06-24T01:59:14","slug":"federal-judge-blocks-snap-limits-on-candy-and-sugary-drinks-how-a-jacksonville-market-works-to-keep-up","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/888430\/","title":{"rendered":"Federal judge blocks SNAP limits on candy and sugary drinks. How a Jacksonville market works to keep up"},"content":{"rendered":"

JACKSONVILLE, Fla.<\/strong> \u2013 The door chime at Johnson\u2019s Meat & Seafood Market on Cleveland Road is still a new sound for a neighborhood where residents say grocery options can be limited.<\/p>\n

Owner Rodney Johnson opened the store in December 2025, betting that a market focused on everyday essentials \u2014 produce, meats and seafood \u2014 could fill a gap in an area some describe as a food desert.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy father opened up a convenience store here in 1985 next door,\u201d Johnson told News4JAX. \u201cThey\u2019re familiar with us and we\u2019re familiar with them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Johnson said he wanted the store to offer more than just quick snacks, and to make healthier choices easier to reach for people who don\u2019t want to drive across town.<\/p>\n

But for Johnson, the shelves are only part of the equation. The other part is whether customers can pay \u2014 and in this neighborhood, he said that often means SNAP and EBT.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat that looks like here is probably about 50% of our revenue,\u201d Johnson said.<\/p>\n

Johnson said the approval process to accept EBT took months, but once it was in place, the store saw immediate support. <\/p>\n

That local reality is now tied to a national legal fight. Across the country, several states sought permission to restrict what SNAP benefits could buy, targeting items like candy, soda and other sugary drinks. <\/a><\/p>\n

The effort was encouraged by Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. under the Trump administration\u2019s \u201cMake America Healthy Again\u201d campaign, with supporters arguing the restrictions could improve public health by nudging consumers toward better choices.<\/p>\n

Critics, including some SNAP recipients and advocates, argued the restrictions were confusing and could stigmatize families, especially when a purchase is declined at checkout.<\/p>\n

This week, U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson in Washington ruled the federal government cannot block SNAP benefits<\/a> from being used to buy candy and sugary drinks. <\/p>\n

In her opinion, Jackson said the problem wasn\u2019t whether the restrictions were a good idea, but whether they followed the law. She pointed to Congress\u2019 definition of \u201cfood\u201d under SNAP, which allows benefits for \u201cany food or food product for home consumption,\u201d with exceptions such as alcohol, tobacco and hot prepared foods meant to be eaten immediately.<\/p>\n

For retailers, Johnson said keeping up with changes comes down to guidance and technology. He said stores typically receive updates through the state, and his point-of-sale system can be adjusted to flag items that are not eligible.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe state normally sends that information out and we read it and then it\u2019ll be applied,\u201d he said. \u201cSo even if we scan it and make a mistake, our system won\u2019t allow you to purchase an ineligible product, it will flag it.\u201d<\/p>\n

As the case moves forward, Johnson said his focus remains on serving the neighborhood.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re doing our best to take care of this community the very best we can,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Copyright 2026 by WJXT News4JAX – All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"JACKSONVILLE, Fla. \u2013 The door chime at Johnson\u2019s Meat & Seafood Market on Cleveland Road is still a…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":888431,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5136],"tags":[5229,168806,3188,723,6972,7310,6974,67,586,132,5230,68,2969],"class_list":["post-888430","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-jacksonville","tag-america","tag-ebt","tag-fl","tag-florida","tag-food-stamps","tag-jacksonville","tag-snap","tag-united-states","tag-united-states-of-america","tag-unitedstates","tag-unitedstatesofamerica","tag-us","tag-usa"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/116802615065723188","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/888430","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=888430"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/888430\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/888431"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=888430"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=888430"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=888430"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}