Same-day grocery delivery app Instacart has announced a new initiative to help make its services more accessible. The move comes in partnership with ALDI, a German discount supermarket chain. As a result of this joint venture, customers will soon be able to use EBT SNAP (Electronic Benefit Transfer and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) food stamps to make payments for their grocery orders.
In order to make payments with EBT SNAP, users will have to select eligible products from ALDI on Instacart. Qualifying products mainly include items such as fresh foods and pantry staples. Customers will also be able to decide how much of their EBT benefits would they like to spend on the purchase.
Today, Instacart aims to close the food insecurity gap by launching EBT SNAP on the platform. We’re particularly proud to kick this program off in Georgia where food insecurity impacts 12.5% of the population. pic.twitter.com/vq7shqJGQe
— Instacart (@Instacart) October 22, 2020
Nilam Ganenthiran, President of Instacart, commented on the newly added payment method:
"At Instacart, our mission is to create a world where everyone has access to the food they love and more time to enjoy it together. As the nation continues to grapple with the effects of COVID-19, we recognize Instacart has an opportunity to increase access to fresh, nutritious food and pantry staples by unlocking EBT SNAP payments for online grocery delivery and pickup services in communities across the country. It"s incredibly important to us to support the communities in which our own employees live and work, so we"re excited to start this program in Georgia, which is home to our Atlanta-based customer and shopper care team. We"re proud to partner with ALDI on this important initiative and are committed to being a long-term solution for EBT SNAP households and connecting everyone, no matter who they are or where they live, to the groceries and essential goods they need."
Instacart is planning to launch the EBT SNAP initiative in the weeks to come. Initially, Instacart users situated in Georgia will be able to use food stamps to pay at over 60 ALDI branches. In the later months, this will be increased to include residents of Illinois, California, Florida, and Pennsylvania who will be able to use their EBT SNAP benefits at over 570 outlets in said states.
For more information on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), readers can visit the official benefits government website.