Online grocery delivery service provider Shipt announced on Wednesday it will officially begin accepting Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, known as SNAP, payments for orders at Meijer and Target stores.
Shipt, based in Alabama and owned by Minneapolis-based Target Corp., says its upgrade to accept SNAP EBT payments will help increase access to healthy foods for SNAP benefit recipients, including those in areas known as food deserts, according to a news release.
In Michigan, about 1.3 million people in nearly 743,000 households currently receive food assistance, according to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS).
Through Shipt, SNAP recipients pay a discounted monthly membership of $4.99. A standard membership is $10.99 billed monthly or $99 if you pay yearly.
SNAP recipient memberships have access to all Shipt membership benefits, including no delivery fee with a $35 minimum order, exclusive deals and preferred shoppers.
Shipt’s website has a separate section for SNAP EBT-eligible foods.
Providing greater access to affordable and nutritious food using SNAP benefits as payment, Shipt says, is part of the company’s initiative and efforts to reduce food insecurity and provide access to nutritious foods.
“Accepting SNAP EBT payments is another step in Shipt’s efforts to reduce hunger, and we are proud to help more Americans access affordable, nutritious foods in a convenient way — no matter their income, their transportation resources, or where they live,” said Shipt Vice President of Economic and Social Impact Khadijah Abdullah in a news release.
Eric Mitchell, president of Alliance to End Hunger, applauded Shipt accepting EBT Payments.
“No one organization can solve food insecurity alone — it takes a collection of voices coming together to support and advocate for communities in need,” Mitchell said in a news release.
Shipt, according to a news release, also teamed up with the University of Michigan on a research project as well as a Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan demonstrating the benefits of grocery delivery to individuals with low income or food insecurity.
The U-M project delivered groceries through Shipt to low-income pregnant youths, age 24 and under, enrolled in WIC, a federally funded supplement nutritional program for women, infants and children.
The majority (75%) of the groceries delivered were WIC-approved fruits and vegetables. According to the study, researchers found “new evidence that grocery delivery of healthy foods is a feasible and acceptable intervention for pregnant young women with low incomes.”
A Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan-funded project provided food stipends and delivery services via Shipt to low-income or food insecure and Type 2 diabetic individuals.
Results, according to the study, showed “a majority of participants reported that grocery delivery helped them make healthier meals and that they were more aware of their food choices.”
For more information of about using SNAP benefits with Shipt, go to shipt.com/snap .
Contact Detroit Free Press food writer Susan Selasky and send food and restaurant news to: sselasky@freepress.com. Follow @SusanMariecooks on X (formerly Twitter.) Support local journalism and become a digital subscriber to the Free Press .
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Shipt will accept SNAP EBT payments for Meijer, Target orders
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