New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said he personally negotiated with President Donald Trump to secure a nationwide postponement of new federal SNAP requirements affecting bodegas.
The new agreement gives retailers at least 90 more days before the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) begins enforcing its expanded food storage requirements.
The regulations were originally scheduled to take effect Nov. 4 and could cause stores that don’t comply to lose their authorization to accept SNAP benefits.
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“Without more time, many of these stores risked losing the ability to accept SNAP, which would threaten their livelihoods and make it harder for families to put food on the table,” Mamdani said Friday, adding that the delay would apply “nationwide.”
Why it matters
More than 36 million Americans rely on SNAP, while more than 250,000 retailers across the country are eligible to participate in the program.
New York City alone has more than 10,000 bodegas and convenience stores, according to Mamdani.
Under the new stocking standards, participating retailers must offer many more varieties of staple foods. While larger supermarkets are generally equipped to meet these requirements, smaller neighborhood stores may face challenges due to their limited storage space and refrigeration.
What you need to know
Mamdani initially asked for a six-month delay, warning that some stores could lose their ability to accept SNAP. The USDA initially rejected calls to delay implementation before granting a 90-day reprieve following discussions involving Mamdani, Trump and Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins.
“When hundreds of bodegas came to our administration for help, we supported them,” Mamdani said. “I am grateful that President Trump has agreed to delay the start of enforcement of this rule, and we will continue to fight to protect our neighborhood businesses and the New Yorkers who depend on them.”
Mamdani reaches deal to delay SNAP cuts
Mamdani said the extension came after talking with Trump and Rollins about the new regulations.
The USDA confirmed Friday that it would give retailers an additional 90 days to comply, telling Politico: “Today, the department will give retailers an additional 90 days to get it right. Recipients, regardless of zip code and community, should have access to more than jelly and meat sticks.”
Mamdani argued that without additional delay, bodegas unable to meet the new standards could lose their SNAP authorization, which would limit where recipients can use their food assistance.
However, the administration has not withdrawn these requirements. The agreement simply delays its implementation for at least 90 days to give affected stores more time to stock eligible products.
“The agreement gives thousands of neighborhood bodegas and grocery stores additional time to meet new food storage requirements without risking their ability to accept SNAP benefits,” said Alex Beene, a financial literacy professor at the University of Tennessee at Martin. News week.
“Going forward, this agreement could become a useful example of how federal and local governments can balance the goal of improving access to food with the economic realities facing small retailers, but the real test will come when the extension expires in February 2027.”
Is Trump cutting SNAP benefits?
The rule at the center of Mamdani’s deal does not directly reduce the amount of SNAP benefits households receive. Instead, it changes what stores must sell to remain allowed to accept these benefits. This could affect beneficiaries if their most accessible convenience store or bodega loses its SNAP authorization.
The Trump administration also supported another major change to SNAP by allowing states to restrict the products recipients can purchase with their benefits.
For some states, that means restricting purchases of foods like soda and candy. Florida, for example, began banning SNAP purchases of soda, energy drinks, candy and some ultra-processed prepared desserts in April.
Changes planned in USDA proposal
National Retailer Standards increase the quantity and variety of food products that most SNAP-approved stores must carry.
Under the final rule announced by the USDA in May, retailers must offer seven varieties in each of four basic food categories:
- milkman
- grains
- protein
- fruits and vegetables.
Previously, stores could meet this requirement with three varieties in each category.
Stores must also offer perishable foods in at least three of the four categories, up from two, and offer at least three units of each eligible variety. This results in a minimum inventory of 84 eligible items.
Certain foods such as butter, jerky, snack bars and fruit spreads no longer count toward meeting the minimum storage requirement. This does not necessarily mean that SNAP recipients cannot purchase these products, but that the products cannot be used by retailers to meet the stocking threshold.
Specialty stores such as butchers, fish markets and fresh produce stands are exempt from the new requirements.
“Mamdani was able to convince Trump several times after his meeting in Washington. The reality is that SNAP represents a significant percentage of revenue for many grocery stores across the country, especially for small ones,” said Kevin Thompson, CEO of 9i Capital Group and host of the 9innings podcast. News week.
“Any delay in perceived reductions or rule changes will allow businesses to continue receiving these same benefits and give them time to comply with the new SNAP rules.”
What other deals have Mamdani and Trump made?
The SNAP deal is not the first time the Democratic socialist mayor and Republican president have found common ground despite their ideological differences.
One of their most notable areas of cooperation is housing.
In February, Mamdani traveled to Washington and met with Trump to propose a massive development project at Sunnyside Yard in Queens. The mayor has proposed securing more than $21 billion in federal funding to build a platform above the rail yard that could accommodate 12,000 affordable housing units, as well as parks, schools and health care facilities.
They didn’t reach a $21 billion funding deal at that meeting, but when Trump met with Mamdani at Gracie Mansion in September, the two men agreed to establish a new level of talks between the mayor’s housing and operations officials and the White House on the Sunnyside Yard project.
At the time, Trump said the project was “a very federally oriented job” that would require federal approvals and “probably some federal money.”
What happens next
The 90-day extension does not permanently block the USDA rule. Unless the federal government changes course, affected SNAP retailers will eventually have to comply with expanded storage requirements.
Newsweek reporters and editors used Martyn, our AI assistant, to produce this story. Learn more about Martyn here.
Contact Newsweek editors about this story: Samantha Beech And Dave Siminoff.
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