Meijer makes healthy foods more accessible for SNAP participants

Midwest retailer Meijer is now accepting the use of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits on its Meijer app.

The new payment capability was unveiled across all of its Midwest stores last week, enabling SNAP participants to pay for their Meijer app orders using an Electronic Benefits Transfer card. The enhancement represents the latest way Meijer is increasing access to healthy food and beverages and comes just in time for Midwest families to receive $40 each month in summer EBT benefits for each SNAP-eligible school-aged child to buy groceries.

"Meijer is a family company committed to serving other families across the Midwest," said Calli Schmid, vice president of grocery for Meijer. "By accepting SNAP benefits on the Meijer app, we are providing participants with more options and flexibility to shop for the groceries they need and want, while also reducing barriers that may prevent them from eating well."

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In April, Meijer doubled the value of a previously offered discount on select milk products and is now offering 40% off any brand or size of 1% and fat free milk. Meijer announced in December it's the largest—and the only retailer in its six-state footprint—selected to partner on Healthy Fluid Milk Incentives projects, which were established by the 2018 Farm Bill to promote milk as part of a healthy diet. Meijer was awarded a grant by Auburn University's Hunger Solutions Institute to participate in the "Add Milk" initiative to incentivize SNAP participants to purchase fluid milk.

Other ways Meijer is helping SNAP participants save include:

• Produce Discounts: Meijer is continuing to offer a 10% discount on SNAP purchases of qualifying produce thanks to a waiver granted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in 2022.
• Home Delivery: In November 2022, Meijer began offering free Home Delivery to increase access to healthy foods. Also, in 2022, Meijer began accepting SNAP benefits for Meijer Pickup and Home Delivery orders on Meijer.com.
• Flashfood: Meijer became the first retailer nationwide in 2023 to accept SNAP benefits through the Flashfood app that allows customers to purchase surplus close-dated food at a deep discount.

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With the Meijer app, SNAP participants can now shop for more than 100,000 items, including fresh produce, meat, dairy and pantry staples, and pay for them with their EBT card digitally or in store. The Meijer app is available for free on iOS and Android devices and can be downloaded from the App Store or Google Play. SNAP customers can link their EBT card to their Meijer account online or at any Meijer Customer Service desk. Once linked, they can use their EBT card as a payment method on the app and choose from various delivery and pickup options.