Dairy Nutrition Incentive Program Introduced in the House

U.S. Reps. Jim Costa (D-Calif.) and Nick Langworthy (R-N.Y.) introduced the Dairy Nutrition Incentives Program Act of 2023 (H.R.5099), a bipartisan bill that would provide a dollar-for-dollar incentive for SNAP participants to purchase nutritious dairy products like milk, cheese, and yogurt. The Senate version of the bill (S.1474) was introduced in May by U.S. Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Roger Marshall (R-Kan.) and currently has 5 bipartisan cosponsors. IDFA is advocating for the bill to be included in the next Farm Bill as a next step towards our goal of creating a nationwide dairy nutrition incentive program for all SNAP participants. 

The Dairy Nutrition Incentives Program Act of 2023 builds on the Healthy Fluid Milk Incentives Projects (HFMI), a program created in the 2018 Farm Bill that authorized $20 million in funding for projects to test the best methods of incentivizing the purchase of skim and 1% milk options among SNAP participants. The Dairy Nutrition Incentive Program Act would expand HFMI to cover many more nutritious dairy products like fuller fat milk options, cheese, and yogurt. It would also create mandatory funding of $10 million per year, giving the program certainty and funding to continue to test incentives for dairy products.

IDFA led the charge in the 2018 Farm Bill to create HFMI, and we will again lead the charge to expand HFMI to cover more healthy dairy products, engage more partners, and reach more SNAP participants across the country. We currently have tremendous momentum with HFMI projects expanding into 4 new states this summer, bringing the incentive pilot projects to more than 150 stores, with many more on the way as Congress expands funding for the program. We’re very grateful to all of our members who have advocated for HFMI these past 6 years, and we look forward to continuing to partner with you on continued advocacy to expand this important program.

Please consider taking just a few minutes now to reach out to your members of Congress and ask them to co-sponsor the Dairy Nutrition Incentive Program Act of 2023. This form on the IDFA Campaign Center will allow you to quickly and easily contact each of your members of Congress with information on the bill and why it is important for U.S. nutrition security.

TAKE ACTION NOW

Critically, dairy nutrition incentives partner our dairy industry with the federal government, the hunger community, and the nutrition community in an effort to provide more nutritious foods to SNAP participants. These relationships are crucial to expanding dairy’s role in other federal nutrition programs like WIC, school meals, and commodity purchases.

Find out more about the Dairy Nutrition Incentives Program Act of 2023 in this new statement from IDFA. If you have any questions about the bill, the Healthy Fluid Milk Incentives Projects, or the SNAP program, please reach out to IDFA staff experts Rob Rosado and Michelle Matto.

Thank you for your continued advocacy in support of dairy nutrition incentives and for all you do to make a difference for dairy.