The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 authorized Summer Electronic Benefits Transfer for Children (Summer EBT) as a permanent federal food assistance entitlement program beginning in summer 2024. Summer EBT has been tested through evaluations of demonstration projects since 2011. With pending implementation of this new program, this is an appropriate time to reflect on what USDA, FNS research has learned through more than a decade of study.

This study provides current information on adoption of scanning technology among small SNAP-authorized retailers to assess readiness for meeting the Farm Bill requirement, barriers and benefits to adopting scanning technologies, and costs for nonadopting retailers to comply with this requirement.

The Food Insecurity Nutrition Incentive grant program provided $100 million to fund and evaluate projects that were intended to increase fruit and vegetable purchases among SNAP participants by providing incentives at the point of purchase.