SNAP doesn’t just feed families — it sustains Pennsylvania’s farms and food economy

A package of lean ground beef tastes the same whether you pay for it with cash, credit, or  EBT card. Food retailers should know. They are the ones putting it out for sale each day for  their customers.  

Out of the 40,000 different food items you might see in a larger supermarket, ground beef is  one of the most commonly purchased by both SNAP and non-SNAP households. It’s up  there with a gallon of milk, a loaf of bread, and poultry. 

The biggest difference between a SNAP household and a non-SNAP household? An EBT  card, and some tough times. Not what they buy. 

In fact, when it comes to food items purchased by SNAP households – an overwhelming  majority of which include at least one member who is a child, an elderly adult, or person  with a disability – the top ten categories and top seven specific commodities are the same,  though ordered differently. 

The reason is simple.

SNAP families are regular families who happen to need some  temporary assistance putting food on the table. 

When the USDA studied this issue, they found that about 40 cents of every dollar of food  expenditures by SNAP households is spent on basic items such as meat, fruits, vegetables,  milk, eggs, and bread. Another 40 cents are spent on a variety of items such as cereal,  prepared foods, dairy products, rice, and beans. The last 20 cents out of every dollar  typically goes on sweetened beverages, desserts, salty snacks, candy and sugar.  

For non-SNAP households? Pretty much the same.  

And just as important, the economic activity that SNAP purchases support is exactly the  same as from a non-SNAP household. Grocers don’t order SNAP ground beef and non SNAP ground beef. Beef is beef. Milk is milk. Bananas are bananas.  

Businesses along Pennsylvania’s food supply chain – from your local grocery and  convenience store, to wholesale and distribution companies, food producers, and farmers  – all benefit greatly from SNAP. It’s arguably the most successful public-private partnership in  American history. 

Recent events and some back-of-the-napkin math bear it out. During the COVID-19  pandemic, the federal government introduced SNAP Emergency Allotments (EAs) to help  address rising food insecurity. These were temporary, additional payments to households  receiving SNAP benefits. EAs provided SNAP households an additional $95 in benefits per  month, at minimum. When EAs ended in March 2023, the Department of Human Services  reported an average loss of $181 per SNAP household across Pennsylvania.

Beyond what that loss meant for families themselves – and we know it meant increased  food insecurity, greater reliance on food pantries, and heightened financial stress – for  businesses in the food sector it meant, quite literally, less food being purchased, and  therefore ordered, and therefore produced.

With more than one million SNAP households in  Pennsylvania each losing an average of $181, we can estimate a direct contraction of  almost $189 million per month in the state’s food economy when Emergency Allotments  ended. And of course the true economic impact was larger than that because we know that  for every dollar invested in SNAP, there is an impact worth more than $1.50 that goes into  local economies supporting those businesses getting food to store shelves, and the people  they employ. 

As you read this, Congress is contemplating massive changes to how SNAP is funded.  While exact figures remain the subject of negotiation, the upshot is that a sea change could  be on the way that would fundamentally alter how food assistance works in the United  States, with potentially catastrophic impacts not just to SNAP recipients but your local  supermarket, food producers, and farmers across Pennsylvania. 

Of course there are always opportunities and ways to improve the way government  programs work, and we should be clear-eyed about taking on that challenge when it comes  to SNAP.

But the fact is it remains a highly popular, and massively successful program that  fundamentally achieves what it sets out to do: Provide temporary assistance to families  who need help putting food on the table.  

SNAP also means a great deal to the farmers, truck drivers, warehouse workers, and food  sellers in our communities, who all benefit from the added demand the program helps  support. Pennsylvanians, and in particular our congressional delegation, should not lose  sight of that as work on a federal budget reaches a climax in Washington.

Alex Baloga became president and CEO of Pennsylvania Food Merchants Association (PFMA) in 2017 after rising through the ranks after joining the association in 2013. He leads the organization’s government relations work across all levels and represents PFMA on numerous boards and advisory councils, including FIAE, the PA Dairymen’s Association, and the WIC Advisory Group. Baloga has been recognized on multiple “40 Under 40” lists and received the Grocery Manufacturers Association’s Excellence in Government Affairs Award.