Beginning January 1, 2026, sugary drinks and candy will no longer be eligible for purchase with SNAP benefits in Indiana. USDA/Food and Nutrition Service is primarily responsible for compliance. With that, USDA/FNS has informed the state that a 90-day grace period is in place from the implementation date of January 1, 2026.
Retailers are encouraged to email questions to SmartSNAPInquiries@fssa.IN.gov.
Announcements
Retailer meetings
The Indiana Family and Social Services Administration Division of Family Resources will hold Smart SNAP Retailer meetings to provided an updates on the Make Indiana Healthy Again initiative to remove sugary soft drinks and candy from the taxpayer-funded SNAP.
Recordings:
Retailer Toolkit
To help raise awareness about the changes to SNAP benefit, please consider sharing and posting the resources below. Suggestions for additional materials may be sent to SmartSNAPInquiries@fssa.IN.gov.
Self-Attestation of Compliance form
Retailers need to submit the completed form below to SmartSNAPInquiries@fssa.IN.gov by April 1, 2026.
Flyers
- Attention SNAP Benefit Recipients : Starting Jan. 1, 2026, SNAP benefits cannot be used to purchase sugary drinks or candy.
- Examples of approved and not approved sugary drinks and candy
Social Media:
- Image
- Text: Coming Jan. 1: Smart SNAP means healthier choices for Hoosiers. SNAP benefits will no longer cover sugary drinks or candy — helping families build stronger futures. Learn more here:https://on.in.gov/l86xw
Smart SNAP labels
- Smart SNAP approved and not approved labels
- These labels may be printed to help identify items that are approved and not approved for purchase with SNAP benefits.
Commonly Questioned Items
The list below are commonly questioned items and is meant for general guidance purposes only and not a definitive list of all items allowed and not allowed to be purchased using SNAP benefits.
| Item | Allowed | Not Allowed |
|---|---|---|
| Protein bars | X | |
| Granola bars | X | |
| Cereal bars | X | |
| Fruit snacks (example roll-ups) | X | |
| Chocolate covered nuts | X | |
| Chocolate covered fruit | X | |
| Chocolate covered pretzels | X | |
| Yogurt covered pretzels | X | |
| Chocolate milk | X | |
| Unsweetened bakers chocolate | X | |
| Baked goods (muffins, cookies, cakes,etc.) | X | |
| No bake cookies | X | |
| Flavored honey sticks (with no other sweetener) | X | |
| Marshmallows | X | |
| Potato chips | X | |
| Ice cream | X | |
| Gum | X | |
| Mints | X | |
| Candy bars or pieces | X | |
| Chocolate chips | X | |
| Caramel/kettle microwave popcorn | X | |
| Caramel corn/kettle corn (pre-popped) | X | |
| Trail mix | X | |
| Fitness/protein drinks | X | |
| Bottled coffee drinks that contain dairy | X | |
| Unsweetened bottled coffee drinks with or without dairy | X | |
| Sweetened bottled coffee drinks that do not contain dairy | X | |
| Sports drinks | X | |
| Powdered drink mixes without sweetener | X | |
| Powdered drink mixes with sweetener | X | |
| Bottled sweetened tea | X | |
| Powdered tea mix with sweetener | X | |
| Powdered tea mix without sweetener | X | |
| Sprinkles and other cake decorating toppings | X | |
| All fountain drinks/slushies, etc. | X |
FAQ
The implementation date for these changes is January 1, 2026.
USDA/Food and Nutrition Service is primarily responsible for compliance. With that, USDA/FNS has informed the state that a 90-day grace period is in place from the implementation date of January 1, 2026
We would prefer that you not create your own consumer commutations materials. FNS has requested that DFR provide communication materials. We are currently developing them and will send out an announcement when they are available.
Yes, FSSA/DFR will be communicating directly with SNAP recipients on these changes.
Please email SmartSNAPInquiries@fssa.IN.gov with specific questions.
We are not providing a list of all excluded items.
At this time, potato chips will continue as an eligible item to be purchased with SNAP.
We are currently only focused on candy and naturally or artificially sweetened drinks.
The rules for cash assistance (TANF) on EBT cards will remain unchanged.
We are using the state sales tax as a baseline and the definition for soft drinks does follow the sales tax definition. The candy definition is slightly different as it does not exclude items that contain flour.
The state sales tax list is not intended to be an all inclusive list.
The soda restriction is on both diet and regular because it contains things that are naturally or artificially sweetened.
Energy drinks will not be allowed to be purchased with SNAP benefits.
Gatorade or other sports drinks will not be allowed to be purchased with SNAP benefits. Pedialyte will be allowable.
GS-1 is no longer being used as a baseline.
Yes, we have been in contact with FMI and await their response in providing a potentially viable UPC level list.
Unsweetened tea is allowed to be purchased using SNAP benefits but sweet tea is not.
Celsius is an energy drink so would no longer be eligible for purchase with SNAP
Yes
Fruit juices must be exclusively naturally sweetened (100%) to be an allowable purchase.