Billionaire investor Bill Ackman is backing a sharp critique of America's food stamp program, arguing it encourages unhealthy diets while driving up health care costs for taxpayers.
On Sunday, Ackman reposted a message from health policy advocate Calley Means on X, that blasted the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
Means wrote: "We spend double the amount on SNAP as we do on the Marines each year. The budget of SNAP is 12 times higher than ICE. And 70% of the program goes to buy soda and ultraprocessed food. This leads to hundreds of billions in Medicaid costs. Public policy insanity."
Ackman added his own warning: "Absurd, and that's before you consider the cost of the disease burden that comes from subsidizing poisonous food and drink."
His remarks echo long-standing concerns that SNAP, which serves more than 40 million Americans, allows purchases of sugary drinks and processed snacks linked to obesity, diabetes and other chronic conditions.
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In February, Ackman faced backlash for criticizing Coca-Cola Co. KO and PepsiCo Inc. PEP, likening their marketing strategies to those of tobacco companies and linking them to obesity and diabetes.
He referenced Cindy Crawford's 1992 Pepsi ad, claiming it exemplified misleading advertising, and questioned why class-action lawsuits had not targeted the soda giants. Critics highlighted Ackman's contradictions, noting his investments in Restaurant Brands International and Chipotle, which sell unhealthy foods.
Earlier this month, billionaire Mark Cuban endorsed the President Donald Trump administration's Make America Healthy Again policy targeting junk food.
He publicly supported Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s new SNAP restrictions via X, praising FoodFight USA for addressing ultraprocessed foods. Kennedy announced waivers for six states banning soda, candy, and other junk food from SNAP eligibility starting in 2026.
The policy threatened $6 billion in annual SNAP beverage sales, with sugar-sweetened drinks accounting for 9.3% of all SNAP purchases. Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, and the American Beverage Association have historically lobbied against such restrictions, representing a $195 billion U.S. beverage market.
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