New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced on Friday that he had personally secured a 90-day delay for bodegas and other small retailers to comply with new federal food-stamp rules, after direct negotiations with the Trump administration.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture rule, which took effect on November 4, requires SNAP-authorized retailers to stock seven varieties of food in each of four staple categories — dairy, grains, proteins and produce — up from three. "I am grateful that President Trump has agreed to delay beginning of enforcement of this rule, and we will continue fighting to protect our neighborhood businesses and the New Yorkers who depend on them," Mamdani said in a statement.
Mamdani said he sought the extension after owners of 100 of New York City's more than 10,000 bodegas contacted City Hall with concerns about meeting the new requirements. "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," his statement said. He said the delay would apply nationwide, not just in New York.
The mayor had written to Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins last week asking for a six-month delay. The USDA confirmed the delay, and the White House confirmed the temporary reprieve; the National Association of Convenience Stores thanked Trump, Mamdani and Rollins for giving stores more time to comply. Bodegas, convenience stores and small grocers make up roughly 70 percent of all SNAP retailers, according to the Food Research and Action Center.
The rule change fulfills a decade-old congressional mandate passed in a 2014 farm bill that was blocked in federal spending bills until May of this year. The USDA says the goal is to improve nutrition variety in food deserts. The 90-day pause is not a reversal: the stocking requirements still take effect in February unless they are changed or delayed again.
