Sweet tea among ‘junk food’ SC governor asks to restrict from food stamps
South Carolinians soon won’t be able to purchase their sweet tea using federal food benefits, according to an executive order Gov. Henry McMaster issued Thursday.
“If you want to buy it with your money, you can go right ahead,” McMaster told reporters Thursday. “But when it comes to the taxpayers, there’s certain things that they don’t need to be paying for.”
McMaster directed the Department of Social Services to apply for a waiver from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to restrict candy, soda, sweetened beverages and energy drinks from being purchased with federal food benefits. The department will have to submit the waiver within 14 days.
If approved, South Carolina will join 11 Republican-led states that have received similar waivers. Democrat-led Colorado also received a waiver. USDA secretary Brooke Rollins has agreed to approve the junk food waivers. The restrictions will begin next year in the 12 other states. It is not clear when South Carolina’s restrictions would go into effect, if approved.
The move follows the Trump administration’s growing “Make American Health Again” movement. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., U.S. Health and Human Services secretary, has proposed programs that he says will reduce chronic diseases. Restricting some junk food from being purchased with Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits, previously known as food stamps, is part of that agenda.
The changes could effect the roughly 1 in 10 South Carolinians that received SNAP benefits in May 2025, according to USDA data.
The restricted items include candy, soft drinks, energy drinks and sweetened beverages. Hot food, alcohol, tobacco and other non-food items are already restricted. The executive order includes definitions and carve-outs for each of the restricted items. For example, energy drinks don’t include coffee or tea. Candy doesn’t include baked goods, and sweetened beverages don’t include milk or sports drinks.
McMaster told reporters Thursday that he did not believe sweet tea was restricted. But McMaster spokesperson Brandon Charochak later clarified to The State that sweet tea was included in the waiver.
Sen. Wes Climer, R-York, tried to squeeze in a budget amendment requesting a waiver that would restrict candy and soda, but it failed. Opponents argued the waiver only impacts low-income people, and taxpayer dollars can still be used to purchase candy and soda in government agencies.
The restrictions won’t do much to improve physical health, Orgul Ozturk, the economics department head at the University of South Carolina, previously told The State. Enhancing access to healthy food or increasing food benefits could help, said Danielle Krobath, an assistant professor at the University of South Carolina’s Arnold School of Public Health.
This story was originally published September 4, 2025 at 2:50 PM.