Press Release
No Kid Hungry, Instacart, and Mercy Housing Launch Research Initiative to Combat Hunger and Improve Nutrition for Families in Affordable Housing Communities, Food Deserts
White House spotlights groundbreaking nutrition program and research initiative in California and Georgia
SAN FRANCISCO, February 27, 2024 — Instacart (NASDAQ: CART), the leading grocery technology company in North America; No Kid Hungry, a Share Our Strength campaign; and Mercy Housing, one of the largest affordable housing organizations in the U.S., today announced a partnership to expand access to nutritious food and nutrition education for families living in affordable housing communities located in food deserts, as well as study the health outcomes of such interventions.
Through the project, 200 families across three affordable housing communities in California and Georgia are receiving ongoing nutrition benefits and nutrition education from No Kid Hungry, free Instacart+ memberships, and $40 per month in Instacart Health Fresh Funds grocery stipends for a full year. This includes 50 households each at two affordable housing communities in Esparto and Stockton, California, and 100 households at a third community in Savannah, Georgia.
The White House highlighted the groundbreaking program today in announcing new commitments from private and public sector leaders to advance the National Strategy on Hunger, Nutrition and Health.
“Every family in every community should have access to the nutritious food they need to thrive,” said Sarah Fleisch, Senior Director, Policy Research & Development at Instacart. “With Instacart Health, we’re leveraging our technology and our reach to bridge food access gaps and improve nutrition security for those who need it most. We’re proud to partner with No Kid Hungry and Mercy Housing to help families living in food deserts and affordable housing communities get the food they need while studying the health benefits of these interventions.”
The one-year pilot program and corresponding research will evaluate whether select interventions improve nutrition security among families living in food deserts and seek to better understand the dietary health outcomes of those interventions. Through the program, independent researchers will examine how sustainable food access and nutrition education programs co-created with residents can affect, for example, food security levels, SNAP enrollment and utilization, and purchasing of fruits and vegetables. Results from the study are anticipated in late 2024, and could be formative in adopting broader scale intervention as part of the healthcare industry’s investment in housing as a social driver of health.
The program is an extension of No Kid Hungry’s multi-state Nutrition in Housing program, which is designed to increase food security, enrollment in and utilization of SNAP, consumption of fruits and vegetables, and improved dietary health.
“We’re excited to deepen our partnership with Instacart and Mercy Housing to reduce geographic inequities in food access and meet families right where they are,” said Lisa Davis, senior vice president at Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry campaign. “With more than 13 million children in the United States living with hunger, this type of cross-sector collaboration is essential to breaking down the barriers that keep families on tight food budgets from accessing the nutrition they need to thrive.”
The research is made possible via Instacart Health, an initiative within Instacart leveraging its nationwide reach, innovative technology, research and advocacy to expand access to nutritious food, make healthy choices easier, and scale food as medicine programs. Instacart partners with more than 1,500 retail banners and over 85,000 stores across North America, and the company is committed to expanding access to nutritious food to more families and communities. Instacart today accepts SNAP online from more than 170 retail banners across more than 14,000 stores in all 50 states and Washington D.C., reaching 96% of U.S. households enrolled in SNAP. ¹
Parag Gupta, Mercy Housing’s Chief Program Officer, shared, “We are proud to partner with Instacart and No Kid Hungry. By leveraging Mercy Housing’s resident relationships, No Kid Hungry’s deep experience in increasing food security, and Instacart’s innovative application of its resources, we are paving the way in connecting affordable housing communities with nutritious and accessible food.”
The collaboration between No Kid Hungry and Instacart builds on a longstanding partnership, including previous food access and nutrition research related to families living with low incomes. Last year, No Kid Hungry, Instacart and the University of Kentucky published a study that examined the impact of online grocery shopping for families on tight food budgets, including those who qualify for SNAP. The study found that online grocery shopping helps low-income families, including SNAP households, stretch their food budgets, save time and money, reduce stress and stigma, and adopt healthy shopping habits.
“We need to ensure every family throughout District 13 has reliable access to nutritious foods,” said California Assemblymember Carlos Villapudua (D-Stockton). “It’s important to understand the existing barriers to food access, so we can begin to address them as a community. I am glad to see Stockton families are benefiting from this partnership that will help unlock access for all Californians.”
About Instacart
Instacart, the leading grocery technology company in North America, works with grocers and retailers to transform how people shop. The company partners with more than 1,500 national, regional, and local retail banners to facilitate online shopping, delivery and pickup services from more than 85,000 stores across North America on the Instacart Marketplace. Instacart makes it possible for millions of people to get the groceries they need from the retailers they love, and for approximately 600,000 Instacart shoppers to earn by picking, packing and delivering orders on their own flexible schedule. The Instacart Platform offers retailers a suite of enterprise-grade technology products and services to power their e-commerce experiences, fulfill orders, digitize brick-and-mortar stores, provide advertising services, and glean insights. With Instacart Ads, thousands of CPG brands – from category leaders to emerging brands – partner with the company to connect directly with consumers online, right at the point of purchase. With Instacart Health, the company is providing tools to increase nutrition security, make healthy choices easier for consumers, and expand the role that food can play in improving health outcomes. For more information, visit www.instacart.com/company, and to start shopping, visit www.instacart.com.
About No Kid Hungry
No child should go hungry in America. But millions of kids in the United States live with hunger. No Kid Hungry is working to end childhood hunger by helping launch and improve programs that give all kids the healthy food they need to thrive. This is a problem we know how to solve. No Kid Hungry is a campaign of Share Our Strength, an organization committed to ending hunger and poverty. Visit www.nokidhungry.org.
About Mercy Housing
Mercy Housing, Inc. is a leading national affordable housing nonprofit headquartered in Denver. Established by the Sisters of Mercy in 1981, and in operation in 41 states, MHI has more than 40 years’ experience developing, preserving, managing, and financing affordable housing. MHI supplements much of its housing with Resident Services, programs that help residents build stable lives. MHI serves tens of thousands of people with low incomes, including families, seniors, veterans, people who have experienced homelessness, and people with disabilities.
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¹ Based on the number of people in the U.S. enrolled in SNAP (USDA) in 2022. Instacart estimate (as of January 2024) based on the number of EBT SNAP households in areas serviced by EBT SNAP-enabled retailers on Instacart.