NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg Wants Ban on Food Stamp Use for Soft Drinks

As a follow up to my earlier comment, I wish the government would limit food stamps to healthy, 'staple' items plus healthy prepared or frozen foods. Then include meal plans and easy recipes that use those healthy foods. I'd love to have that kind of booklet for my own use; it'd save me time on meal planning, and the working poor on public assistance probably don't have much time for good meal planning. I doubt that parents on food stamps really prefer to feed their kids fast food, cookies and soda that will ruin their health, but an easy to use meal plan guide could make eating healthy a workable solution.

My husband and I work for a living, and we rarely buy soda. Our young daughter has NEVER had a cookie or soda, nor does she drink juice (#1 cause of tooth decay in toddlers and babies, and large amounts of OJ contribute to diabetes in kids). We have only fed her healthy food from day 1, and she absolutely LOVES all fruits, eggs, cheese, chicken, beef, most fish, and every vegetable we've tried (although we do have to add a bit of butter or seasoning to a few of them). Why should our tax dollars go toward making poor kids obese and unhealthy, with rotting teeth? I'm not a great cook, but it's not hard to get a child to love the food their bodies love and thrive on. Healthy food helps kids do much better in school, too. No 'junk' should be allowed on food stamps. Everybody loses, especially the poor kids themselves, who then saddle our healthcare system with more costs.

REALLY PEOPLE!!!!!! DON'T WE HAVE BIGGER ISSUES TO WORRY ABOUT THEN IF PEOPLE BUYING SODA WITH THEIR FOOD STAMPS!!!! LOOK AROUND I'M SURE THERE IS A BIGGER AND BETTER ISSUE THAT NEEDS YOU MORE THEN THIS ONE......(NO I DO NOT RECEIVE FOOD STAMPS-I WORK FOR AN AIRLINE FOOR A LIVING)SO FOR THE ONES I HELP OUT WITH THE FOOD STAMPS HAVE A NICE COLD SODA ON ME!!!!!

HELLO, It is not your money, why would you think you could buy whatever you want to eat with foodstamps? This is other peoples money. I think they should do away with it all and just give them 8 gallons of milk a month, beans, etc. no meat no chips crackers or other unhealthy crap. If you want something eles look for work everyday, dont have kids you cant feed. Guess what that would solve most of our problems right there.

Why not also ban cereal, which is just a box of sugar with pretty pictures on the outside.

Ice Cream needs to be banned also, which is also full of sugar.

Why do people think they have RIGHTS when they're being given a hand-out? The purpose of the food stamp program is to provide supplemental money for FOOD--preferably nutritious food--anything less is flat out disrespectful to those of us whose hard-earned dollars are supporting the program. Just what food group does soda fit into? Empty calories, hard on your health and promotes tooth decay. My feeling is that if they've got money to spend on soda, they're being paid too much. If all they're buying is a"treat" every so often, well that can come from their welfare check or whatever means pays for the rest of their living expenses. Many of the same people who receive food stamps also receive WIC as well as commodities, breaks on rent and free breakfast and lunch for their kids at school. That's a lot of freebies. I work long and hard hours and have to budget my "treats". I sure could use a break on my food bills once in a while, plus it's my taxes supporting the food stamp program. It's also my tax dollars paying for the end result medical and dental problems which are accelerated by poor diet/nutrition. So for the many who are abusing the benefits they are being GIVEN; you don't have the unalienable right to be GIVEN a six pack of Pepsi a day. And don't you dare complain about your rights until you're willing to get your butt off the couch and be productive.

I think that's an excellent idea! I've seen alot of those low income families resorted to fast food like Micky D's, and etc. I 'm not gonna label the ethnicity of a family; a mom and 3 toddlers and an infant. I brought home cooked meals from home to feed my 8 months old and ate myself a salad. That mother bought two dishes of CHINESE food like fried noodles and crap. The toodlers were eating those! I saw the mother feeding her infant (at least I'd say 8 months because of the size of an infant) some fried noodles! I was appalled. Yet, she fed her infant with a soda. The infant was the fattest baby I've ever seen. I guess, the mom, just want some convienence. Disgusting! I stopped drinking sodas 16 years ago and my weight has never been gained.

I agree with Jeffery. You have to submit to a drug test when you are applying for a job. Also submit to random ones. Why not have the same for welfare recipients? Fail you no longer can receive benefits. Wow think of the money we can save there!

Since we, the American taxpayers, are footing the bill for EBT, then we should definitely have input into what types of foods can be purchased. I worked in a convenience store for several years, and I witnessed people purchasing all types of unhealthy foods with their benefits. Then they would pay cash for their lotto, cigs, and beer. This is probably the most abused govt funded program out there.