As part of their benefits package, members of the U.S. military have access to government-subsidized grocery stores, where they can save about 25% compared to shopping off base.
So why are so many military members spending their money on fast food instead?
Some U.S. lawmakers hope offering coupons will help change that.
Republican Senator Roger Marshall of Kansas and Democratic Senator Raphael Warnock of Georgia have introduced what they’re calling the Commissary Healthy Options and servicemember Wellness Act, otherwise known as the CHOW Act. Co-sponsored in the House by Democratic Representative Jimmy Panetta of California, the measure would direct the U.S. Department of Defense to introduce a pilot program that would offer coupons to on-base Commissary grocery stores to encourage service members to shop there.
To the bill’s sponsors, it’s not a way to boost business for Commissaries, but a matter of health and military readiness.
Many young military members are living on their own for the first time, and aren’t making the healthiest choices when it comes to what they eat. Those who are unused to, or unable to, prepare their own meals have access to on-base dining facilities, but often “struggle with food quality and operating hour challenges,” the bill’s sponsors explained. “These challenges are pushing troops toward fast food and delivery apps like Uber Eats, which are expensive and unhealthy.”
So their measure would establish a program to “provide coupons to junior enlisted members to purchase food at commissaries.”
The bill leaves the details up to the Pentagon. It would direct the Defense Secretary to select two military bases whose Commissaries have a good “selection of nutritious and minimally processed ready-made and easy-to-make food options,” and offer coupons in the form of monthly vouchers, in an amount to be determined. After a yearlong trial, the participating military bases will gauge service members’ feedback and assess whether the coupons increased their use of Commissaries. “The program could ultimately expand nationwide should the benefit prove successful,” the bill’s sponsors stated.
The lawmakers cited a recent study that found about 70% of all active-duty service members are overweight, and 21% are considered obese. Encouraging them to make better choices could help make us all safer. “Healthy troops are ready troops,” Sen. Marshall said in a statement. “By ensuring our troops are properly nourished,” Rep. Panetta added, “we can strengthen their readiness and reaffirm our responsibility to support those who serve our nation.”
This proposal to boost military members’ grocery benefit comes at an unusual time, as the Pentagon is once again considering eliminating funding for the Commissary system altogether. About $1.5 billion in annual funding allows the Defense Commissary Agency to sell groceries at cost, plus a 5% surcharge to cover the cost of construction and maintenance. But this spring, the Defense Department called for “ancillary” services like retail sales and recreation to be prioritized for privatization.
And on Friday, the Defense Commissary Agency took the next step, putting out a formal request for information from the grocery industry to gauge “whether commercial grocery operators and investment firms are both interested in and capable of assuming commissary operations” – if they commit to preserving “the critical military benefit of a 23.7% average savings for authorized patrons.”
This wouldn’t be the first time the Commissary system has come under budget-cutting scrutiny. In 2014, the Pentagon considered reducing the annual subsidy by more than two-thirds, as a cost-saving measure. Two years earlier, U.S. Senator Tom Coburn proposed eliminating the subsidy, saying military members could save just as much on their groceries by taking advantage of “lower prices, coupons, frequent shopper programs, or promotions” at off-base grocery stores.
So the future of the Commissary coupon proposal is uncertain, as the Pentagon and the Defense Commissary Agency have other, more pressing, matters on their minds at the moment.
But the bill’s sponsors say their goal is one that’s still worth pursuing. “For too long, servicemembers have lacked reliable access to quality, nutritious food options on base,” Sen. Warnock said. The proposed legislation, he said, will “help servicemembers put healthy, tasty, and quality meals on the table, so they can stay focused on the hard work of keeping our country safe.”
For young service members living away from home for the first time, fast food may seem the best, most convenient option in the moment. But learning to eat healthy – and use coupons – could prove to be lessons that last a lifetime.
Image source: Department of Defense
