WHAT HAPPENED: State poultry associations representing 19 separate states this week sent a letter to Senate Agriculture Committee Chair John Boozman (R-AR) and Ranking Member Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) urging the committee to include the House-passed Hot Rotisserie Chicken Act in the Senate Farm Bill. “On behalf of the undersigned state poultry associations and the thousands of farm families, growers, and processors we represent, we write to express our strong support for the House-passed provision allowing SNAP recipients to purchase hot rotisserie chicken, and to respectfully urge you to include this commonsense, no-cost fix in the Senate’s Farm Bill,” the letter said.
WHY IT MATTERS: Under current law, SNAP recipients may purchase a cold rotisserie chicken – the very same bird, but refrigerated – but not a hot one. The letter notes that a hot rotisserie chicken is one of the best values in the grocery store, a complete, ready-to-eat protein for less than $7 on average, according to USDA.
HOW DID WE GET HERE: Governors from eight states have requested waivers to allow hot rotisserie chicken to be purchased via SNAP, but USDA has not granted them due to lack of authority. The House overwhelmingly passed a bipartisan amendment led by Reps. Rick Crawford (R-AR) and Kristen McDonald Rivet (D-MI) to include the bill into H.R. 7567, its version of the Farm Bill. The amendment passed by an overwhelming 384-35 vote. Senators Jim Justice (R-WV), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), and John Fetterman (D-PA) have introduced companion legislation in the Senate, which has been cosponsored by seven other senators.
WHO SIGNED THE LETTER: The following associations signed onto the letter: Alabama Poultry & Egg Association, California Poultry Federation, Delmarva Chicken Association (DE, MD, VA), Georgia Poultry Federation, Kentucky Poultry Federation, Michigan Allied Poultry Industries, Mississippi Poultry Association, North Carolina Poultry Federation, Northwest Chicken Council (OR, WA), Ohio Poultry Association, PennAg Industries Association, Tennessee Poultry Federation, Texas Poultry Federation, The Poultry Federation (AR, MO, OK), and the Virginia Poultry Federation.
NCC’S TAKE: NCC strongly supported and advocated for the amendment in the House Farm Bill, and views this week’s letter from 19 state poultry associations as a powerful reinforcement of that effort.
WHAT’S NEXT: We are urging the Senate, as they consider their version of the Farm Bill, to build on this momentum and add this provision that costs nothing, requires no new spending, and simply extends an existing benefit to a ready-to-eat protein that’s already one of the best values in the grocery store.
