As Emergency SNAP Benefits Expire, Instacart Launches Special Campaign to Support Families and Food Banks Across the Country

New Community Carts campaign allows anyone to donate groceries to food banks in states where emergency COVID-19 SNAP benefits are expiring, with no delivery or service fees

Extension of discounted Instacart+ memberships for SNAP recipients will help families put food on the table

SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 23, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — Instacart, the leading grocery technology company in North America, today announced a special Community Carts campaign and an extension of its discounted Instacart+ membership for SNAP recipients to help families continue to put nutritious food on the table as emergency COVID-19 SNAP benefits expire in 32 states. The expiration means grocery budgets will tighten by at least $95 per month for more than 30 million people and, as a result, many local food banks that are already facing supply shortages amid rising food prices are now bracing for a surge in demand for assistance.

To help Feeding America® partner food banks stock their shelves and ensure those seeking assistance can find it, Instacart is expanding its Community Carts initiative and launching a public awareness campaign to help drive donations to food banks in nearly every state where emergency SNAP funding is expiring. Instacart’s Community Carts tool reimagines the traditional food drive, allowing anyone to easily donate the grocery items their local food banks have identified they need most, with items delivered directly to the food bank by Instacart shoppers.

Starting March 1, anyone can donate food items to almost 100 Feeding America® partner food banks in 31 states where emergency SNAP funds will expire at the end of the month through Community Carts. That is in addition to 24 food banks in 16 states where additional SNAP allotments have already expired. In total, individuals will be able to participate in crowdsourced cart building for good by donating groceries to more than 120 food banks in 47 states, with delivery and service fees waived on every donation order.

“Our goal is to put more food on the table for more families,” said Instacart Chief Corporate Affairs Officer Dani Dudeck. “As grocery budgets tighten for millions of SNAP recipients and lines stretch longer at food banks across the country, accessing affordable, nutritious food has never been harder. At Instacart, we’re committed to finding more ways to support food banks nationwide so they can continue to serve their communities and feed more families.”

Instacart’s Community Carts tool helps food banks secure larger, more targeted donations that match their unique needs. This past holiday season, Instacart customers donated tens of thousands of groceries and other essentials specifically requested by food banks through Community Carts. Anyone can find their local food bank and donate at instacart.com/donate.

“Many partner food banks are preparing for heightened demand as SNAP benefits return to pre-pandemic levels,” said Lauren Biedron, Vice President of Corporate Partnerships at Feeding America. “With this special Community Carts campaign, Instacart is helping food banks get donations that meet their unique needs and stock their shelves during a critical time. We are grateful for our continued partnership with Instacart and the support they provide to food banks nationwide.”

Instacart is also extending its discounted Instacart+ membership program for SNAP recipients. Under the program, anyone who uses an Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) SNAP card to buy groceries on Instacart is eligible for a discounted Instacart+ membership at $4.99/month (50% off) for 12 months. With Instacart+, individuals can access free delivery and Pickup on orders over $35, 5% credit back on all Pickup orders, and reduced service fees on every order.

Research published in 2022 by the University of Kentucky, No Kid Hungry and Instacart found that access to online grocery and delivery can help families with lower incomes save time, reduce transportation costs, and more effectively manage their budgets. SNAP recipients who grocery shop online also purchase more fruits and vegetables than in-store shoppers, without increasing their total grocery bill, according to the research.

“Our research has shown that online grocery shopping can provide very real benefits for families on tight food budgets, including SNAP recipients,” said Courtney Smith, SVP Program Research, Innovation and Impact at No Kid Hungry. “Instacart’s discounted membership for SNAP recipients is one solution that can help more food-insecure families tap into the many benefits of online grocery – including saving time, managing their budgets, and reducing transportation barriers. We applaud Instacart for helping more families access the nutritious food they need.”

The Community Carts campaign and Instacart+ SNAP discount program are part of Instacart’s broader commitment to increasing nutrition security in communities most in need. The company partners with more than 1,000 retailers across over 75,000 stores and reaches over 95% of North American households, including more than 93% of homes in food deserts. Working with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food & Nutrition Service, Instacart also pioneered the EBT SNAP retailer onboarding process in 2020. Today, Instacart enables online SNAP payments with more than 70 retailers across more than 8,000 stores in 49 states and Washington D.C.

Instacart last year launched Instacart Health, a sweeping initiative designed to deliver the ingredients for healthier living through Instacart’s products, partnerships, and policy advocacy. To learn more about Instacart Health, visit www.instacart.com/company/health.

To donate to food banks through Community Carts, visit www.instacart.com/donate.

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 1,000 national, regional, and local retail banners to facilitate online shopping, delivery, and pickup services from more than 75,000 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 hundreds of thousands of 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. For anyone interested in becoming an Instacart shopper, visit https://shoppers.instacart.com/.

Food banks with Community Carts on Instacart (Most are already live; some coming online March 1):

* States where Emergency SNAP benefits will expire March 1 *

Alabama
Food Bank of North Alabama
Community Food Bank of Central Alabama
Feeding the Gulf Coast
Montgomery Area Food Bank

California
Christian Outreach in Action
Del Aire Baptist
Family Health Care Resources
Feeding San Diego
Food Bank of Contra Costa and Solano
Food Bank for Monterey County
Food Bank of Santa Barbara County
Good Shepherd Center
Grace Resources
Redwood Empire Food Bank
San Francisco-Marin Food Bank
Second Harvest of Silicon Valley

Colorado
Care and Share Food Bank (Colorado Springs)
Care and Share Food Bank (Pueblo)
Community Food Share
Weld Food Bank

Connecticut
Connecticut Food Share

DC
Capital Area Food Bank

Delaware
Food Bank of Delaware

Hawaii
Hawaii Food Bank

Illinois
Eastern Illinois Foodbank
Greater Chicago Food Depository
Northern Illinois Food Bank

Kansas
Kansas Food Bank

Louisiana
Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank
Second Harvest Food Bank of Greater New Orleans and Acadiana

Maine
Brewer Area Food Pantry
Community Outreach Services
Footprints Food Pantry
Help Yourself Shelf
Kaydenz Kitchen Food Pantry
Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program
Preble Street
Safe Voices
Sidney Community Food Pantry
The Salvation Army Portland Food Pantry
Trinity Jubilee Center
VCF- Bread of Life Food Pantry
Winslow Community Cupboard
Bath Area Food Bank

Maryland
Maryland Food Bank

Massachusetts
Catholic Charities of Boston

Michigan
Forgotten Harvest
Greater Lansing Food Bank
Food Bank of Eastern Michigan

Minnesota
Department of Indian Work
Second Harvest Heartland

Nevada
Three Square Food Bank

New Hampshire
New Hampshire Food Bank

New Jersey
Community Food Bank of NJ

New Mexico
Roadrunner Food Bank

New York
City Harvest
FeedMore Western NY
Food Bank of Central New York
Food Bank for NYC
Food Bank of the Southern Tier
Island Harvest
Long Island Cares, Inc.

North Carolina
MANNA Food Bank
Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest NC

Ohio
Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank
Freestore Foodbank
Second Harvest Food bank of the Mahoning Valley
Shared Harvest Food Bank
The FoodBank Inc

Oklahoma
Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma
Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma

Oregon
Oregon Food Bank

Pennsylvania
Central Pennsylvania Food Bank
Community Food Warehouse of Mercer County
Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank
Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest Pennsylvania
Philabundance

Texas
Central Texas Food Bank
Coastal Bend Food Bank
El Pasoans Fighting Hunger
Food Bank of the Rio Grande Valley
High Plains Food Bank
Houston Food Bank
West Texas Food Bank
San Antonio Food Bank
South Plains Food Bank

Utah
Utah Food Bank

Vermont
Vermont Food Bank (Barre)
Vermont Food Bank (Brattleboro)

Virginia
Foodbank of Southeastern Virginia
Virginia Peninsula Foodbank
Fredericksburg Regional Food Bank

Washington
Food Lifeline

West Virginia
Facing Hunger Food Bank

Wisconsin
Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin (Appleton)
Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin (Milwaukee)

States where Emergency SNAP benefits have already expired

Alaska
Food Bank of Alaska

Arizona
United Food Bank

Arkansas
Arkansas Food Bank
Food Bank of Northeast Arkansas
Northwest Arkansas Food Bank

Florida
Feeding South Florida
America’s Second Harvest of the Big Bend
Feeding Tampa Bay

Georgia
America’s Second Harvest of Coastal Georgia
Atlanta Community Food Bank
Food Bank of Northeast Georgia

Idaho
The Idaho Foodbank

Indiana
Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana
Community Harvest Food Bank of NE Indiana

Iowa
River Bend Food Bank

Kentucky
Dare to Care Food Bank

Mississippi
Mississippi Food Network

Missouri
The Food Bank for Central & Northeast Missouri
St. Louis Area Foodbank

Nebraska
Family Fare SupermarketsFood Bank for the Heartland

North Dakota
Great Plains Food Bank

South Carolina
Harvest Hope Food Bank

South Dakota
Feeding South Dakota

Tennessee
Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee

SOURCE Instacart