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By Suzanne Blake
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New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said he personally negotiated with President Donald Trump to secure a nationwide delay of new federal SNAP requirements impacting bodegas.
The new agreement gives retailers at least another 90 days before the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) begins enforcing its expanded food-stocking requirements.
The regulations were originally set to take effect November 4 and could cause stores that fail to 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—threatening their livelihoods and making it harder for families to put food on the table,” Mamdani said Friday, adding that the delay would apply “nationwide.”
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Why It Matters
More than 36 million Americans rely on SNAP, while more than 250,000 retailers nationwide are authorized to participate in the program.
New York City alone has more than 10,000 bodegas and corner stores, according to Mamdani.
Under the new stocking standards, participating retailers have to carry substantially more varieties of staple foods. While larger supermarkets are generally equipped to meet those requirements, smaller neighborhood stores can face difficulties because of their limited shelf space and refrigeration.
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What to Know
Mamdani initially sought a six-month delay, warning that some stores could lose their ability to take SNAP. The USDA initially rejected calls to postpone implementation before granting the 90-day reprieve following discussions involving Mamdani, Trump and Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins.
“When hundreds of bodegas came to our administration asking for help, we stood with them,” Mamdani said. “I am grateful that President Trump has agreed to delay beginning enforcement of this rule, and we will continue fighting to protect our neighborhood businesses and the New Yorkers who depend on them.”
Mamdani Makes Deal to Delay SNAP Cuts
Mamdani said the extension came after he spoke with both Trump and Rollins about the new regulations.
The USDA confirmed Friday that it would provide retailers another 90 days to comply, telling Politico: “Today, the Department will afford retailers 90 more 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 time, bodegas unable to meet the new standards could lose their SNAP authorization, which would limit where beneficiaries can use their food assistance.
However, the administration has not withdrawn the requirements. The deal simply delays their enforcement for at least 90 days to give the affected stores more time to stock qualifying products.
“The agreement gives thousands of bodegas and neighborhood grocery stores additional time to meet new food-stocking requirements without risking their ability to accept SNAP benefits,” Alex Beene, a financial literacy instructor for the University of Tennessee at Martin, told Newsweek.
“Looking ahead, 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 cut the dollar amount of SNAP benefits that households receive. Instead, it changes what stores must sell to remain authorized to accept those benefits. That could affect beneficiaries if their most accessible convenience store or bodega loses its SNAP authorization.
The Trump administration has also supported another major change to SNAP in allowing states to restrict which products recipients can purchase with their benefits.
For some states, that means restricting purchases of foods like soda and candy. Florida, for example, began prohibiting SNAP purchases of soda, energy drinks, candy and certain ultra-processed prepared desserts in April.
Changes Coming Under USDA Proposal
The nationwide retailer standards increase the amount and variety of food that most SNAP-authorized stores must carry.
Under the final rule announced by the USDA in May, retailers must offer seven varieties in each of four staple-food categories:
Previously, stores could satisfy the requirement with three varieties in each category.
Stores also must offer perishable foods in at least three of the four categories, compared with two previously, and carry at least three units of each qualifying variety. That translates to a minimum inventory of 84 qualifying items.
Certain foods such as butter, jerky, snack bars and fruit spreads also no longer count toward satisfying the minimum stocking requirement. That does not necessarily mean SNAP recipients cannot buy those products, but the products cannot be used by retailers to satisfy the stocking threshold.
Specialty stores like butcher shops, fish markets and produce stands are exempt from the new requirements.
“Mamdani has been able to win over Trump in a number of instances following his meeting in D.C. The reality is SNAP makes up a material percentage of revenue for many grocery stores around the country, especially for the small ones,” Kevin Thompson, the CEO of 9i Capital Group and the host of the 9innings podcast, told Newsweek.
“Any delay in the cuts or perceived rule changes will allow businesses to continue to receive those very benefits and give them time to comply with the new rules for SNAP.”
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 has been housing.
In February, Mamdani traveled to Washington and met with Trump to pitch a massive development at Sunnyside Yard in Queens. The mayor proposed securing more than $21 billion in federal funding to build a platform above the rail yard that could support 12,000 affordable homes, along with parks, schools and health facilities.
They did not reach a $21 billion funding deal at that meeting, but when Trump met with Mamdani at Gracie Mansion in September, the two agreed to establish a new level of talks between the mayor's housing and operations officials and the White House over the Sunnyside Yard project.
At the time, Trump said the project was “a very federal-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, the affected SNAP retailers will eventually have to comply with the expanded stocking requirements.
Newsweek’s reporters and editors used Martyn, our AI assistant, to produce this story. Learn more about Martyn here.
Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Samantha Beech and Dave Siminoff.
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