RICHMOND, Va. — The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has approved Virginia's waiver to remove "sweetened beverages" from Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits.

Information from the state said the restriction includes "items commonly referred to as 'soda,' 'diet/zero soda,' 'pop,' 'soft drinks,' and 'energy drinks,'" or "any beverage that is made with carbonated water and that is flavored or sweetened with added sugar or artificial sweeteners such as corn sweetener, corn syrup, aspartame, acesulfame potassium, sucralose, dextrose, fructose, glucose, high fructose corn syrup, malt syrup, maltose, raw sugar or sucrose."

The USDA approved the waiver on Tuesday.

“I want to thank Secretary Rollins and the entire Trump Administration for their work on our shared goal o

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