Press Release
Instacart Announces Expansion of EBT SNAP Payment to Three New Retailers for Same-day Grocery Delivery and Pickup
Publix, The Save Mart Companies and Price Chopper/Market 32 now accepting EBT SNAP payment via Instacart
SAN FRANCISCO, April 29, 2021 — Instacart, the leading online grocery platform in North America, today announced an expansion of its EBT SNAP payment integration to include three new retailers – Publix, The Save Mart Companies and Price Chopper/Market 32 – for online grocery delivery and pickup. This expansion will increase EBT SNAP availability by more than 1,500 stores across 15 states.
EBT SNAP is now available at all Publix locations in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia. The Save Mart Companies – including Save Mart, Lucky California, Lucky and FoodMaxx banners – has enabled EBT SNAP across California and Nevada, making them the first Northern California retailer to offer EBT SNAP online. Price Chopper/Market 32 has launched the EBT SNAP payment integration across its New York stores, and will soon expand to its Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania and Vermont locations in the coming weeks.
This expansion comes as the USDA announced it will offer P-EBT benefits to all low-income children of all ages, helping provide adequate nutrition to more than 30 million children over the summer. Once this expansion is complete, Instacart will offer EBT SNAP in more than 4,000 stores across 38 states and Washington D.C. The expansion follows Instacart’s initial rollout of EBT SNAP payments late last year in partnership with more than 2,000 ALDI locations nationwide. Instacart also announced its EBT SNAP partnership with Food Lion, launching across more than 600 Food Lion stores earlier this year. The company’s ongoing expansion highlights Instacart’s commitment to working with the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) to make fresh food and pantry staples easily accessible to even more people across the country.
To help subsidize costs for EBT SNAP participants, Instacart will waive delivery or pickup fees through June 16, 2021, on up to the first three EBT SNAP orders for each customer with a valid EBT card associated with their Instacart account.
“Providing people access to the food they love is at the core of Instacart’s mission. We recognize the opportunity we have to help make fresh food and pantry staples more accessible to communities by breaking down barriers to same-day grocery delivery and pickup,” said Nilam Ganenthiran, President of Instacart. “We’re committed to continuing to expand EBT SNAP payments for Americans nationwide and are proud to partner with three new retailers – Publix, The Save Mart Companies and Price Chopper/Market 32 – on this important initiative.”
“Price Chopper/Market 32 is pleased to be amongst the first national grocery retailers equipped to accept EBT SNAP benefits as a form of payment online via Instacart for same-day grocery delivery and pickup,” said Blaine Bringhurst, Executive Vice President of Merchandising, Marketing and Store Operations at Price Chopper/Market 32. “We’ve advocated for this convenience since our partnership with Instacart began and are truly gratified that the success of its pilot program now allows us to extend the convenience to our customers throughout New York State.”
“Food assistance programs such as EBT/SNAP provide so many families and households struggling with food insecurity in our communities a lifeline to nutritious, affordable meals,” said New York State Assemblymember Patricia Fahy. “I commend Price Chopper/Market 32 for this innovative partnership that will allow those using EBT SNAP benefits to order their groceries ahead through Instacart, ever-more critical amidst a global pandemic and public health crisis.”
“I applaud Instacart for making it easier for New Yorkers in need to stay home and stay safe by integrating EBT SNAP payments into Instacart purchases at Price Chopper/Market 32,” said New York State Senator Neil Breslin. “This collaboration will make a real difference in the lives of constituents by expanding access to grocery delivery.”
“Online grocery shopping has been a convenience for many during the pandemic, and it’s great to see that opportunity now being expanded,” New York State Assemblymember Angelo Santabarbara said. “This initiative from Instacart and Price Chopper/Market 32 gives our families, especially our most vulnerable seniors and people with disabilities, much-needed flexibility to get their grocery shopping done while still maintaining social distancing and putting their health first.”
“This is good news for New Yorkers participating in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP),” said New York State Senator Roxanne J. Persaud, Chair of the NYS Senate Social Services Committee. “With food insecurity remaining at crisis levels, we must continue to expand our reach to all New Yorkers in need.”
Where available, EBT SNAP participants will now be able to shop from Publix, The Save Mart Companies stores (Save Mart, Lucky California, Lucky and FoodMaxx), Price Chopper/Market 32, ALDI and Food Lion via the Instacart website and mobile app. Once an Instacart customer profile is created, customers can enter their EBT food card information as a form of payment in their profile. Customers will need a secondary form of payment for non-food items such as taxes, tips and fees per federal SNAP guidelines. Customers can then enter their zip code to determine if they are near a participating retailer, and begin shopping and selecting items from retailers’ EBT-eligible products. Once items are added to their cart, customers will be able to select how much of their benefits they would like to allocate to the order. Orders for delivery and pickup can be placed by customers for receipt in as fast as an hour or scheduled several days in advance.
About Instacart
Instacart is the leading online grocery platform in North America. Instacart shoppers offer same-day delivery and pickup services to bring fresh groceries and everyday essentials to busy people and families across the U.S. and Canada. Instacart has partnered with nearly 600 beloved national, regional and local retailers, including unique brand names, to deliver from more than 45,000 stores across more than 5,500 cities in North America. Instacart’s delivery service is available to over 85% of U.S. households and 70% of Canadian households. The company’s cutting-edge enterprise technology also powers the ecommerce platforms of some of the world’s biggest retail players, supporting their white-label websites, applications and delivery solutions. Instacart offers an Instacart Express membership that includes reduced service fees and unlimited free delivery on orders over $35. For more information, visit www.instacart.com. For anyone interested in becoming an Instacart shopper, visit https://shoppers.instacart.com/.