Imagine a program that could save the government $10 for every dollar spent on improving the health of low-income individuals. Such an initiative existed, known as the SNAP-Ed program, until it was discontinued in 2025 under the Trump administration’s spending cuts.
The SNAP-Ed program, piloted in 1977 by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, was part of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which supports over 40 million Americans in purchasing groceries. SNAP-Ed aimed to educate these individuals on effectively utilizing their benefits by providing nutrition education through various community resources.
SNAP-Ed’s reach extended to schools, community centers, and university extension offices, offering lessons on label reading, budget management, and cooking skills. It was a federally funded initiative, while states, along with Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico, implemented it with the help of local partners, including nonprofits.
Despite the program’s proven effectiveness and minimal cost—just one penny for every SNAP dollar spent—the program was terminated on October 1, 2025, as part of a larger tax reform and budget package.
Adapting to Change
With the closure of SNAP-Ed, states are seeking ways to continue its education efforts. For instance, Georgia explores alternative funding to sustain programs temporarily, while Wyoming adopts a regional approach to keep some initiatives alive. In Michigan, Michigan State University Extension, which lost over $10 million in federal support, strives to maintain its educational materials accessible online.
The Reach of SNAP-Ed
SNAP-Ed played a crucial role in educating 1.2 million participants on maximizing their SNAP dollars for healthier choices. In 2025, the program operated on a $536 million budget amidst a federal SNAP expenditure exceeding $100 billion. The loss of SNAP-Ed funding threatens the effectiveness of SNAP dollars, as the program’s community trust and health benefits diminish without sustained training.
Fighting Diabetes with Education
Research has demonstrated SNAP-Ed’s positive impact on diabetes prevention. A 2018 pilot study in Detroit paired the Centers for Disease Control’s National Diabetes Prevention Program with SNAP-Ed’s Cooking Matters course, resulting in participants losing weight and improving their diabetes risk markers. The study highlighted the program’s economic benefits, saving $10.64 in Medicaid expenses for every dollar spent on community health education.
Such outcomes are notable, especially in low-income communities where diabetes risk is prevalent. The program’s skills-based education effectively reduced Type 2 diabetes risk and improved health markers, yet it was discontinued despite its success.
Contradictory Policies
The Trump administration’s decision to end SNAP-Ed appears at odds with the “Make America Healthy Again” movement, which emphasizes healthy habits to prevent chronic diseases. The program’s potential to lower the prevalence of chronic illnesses could have saved up to $1 trillion in healthcare costs by 2030.
The proverb, “Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime,” resonates with SNAP-Ed’s mission, which annually equipped over 1.2 million people with essential nutritional education.
