Supermarket News summarized a recent report about the impact of SNAP customers…

SNAP recipients are diverse

• The report found 45% of SNAP recipients have children, 29% have 5+ members in their household, and 37% are Gen Z or Millennia Additionally, a CBPP report states more than 41% of SNAP recipients are in working families and 36% are in families with members who are older adults or disabled.

SNAP recipients spend more per trip

• SNAP recipients have a basket size that is $15 larger than the average customer with almost double the units and tend to spend around $18 more per trip.

SNAP recipients spend more per unit

• SNAP consumers are paying 13% more per unit based on data from the latest quarter. According to Supermarket News, this is due to increased inflation on baby and health/beauty products.

Private label brands are outperforming CPG in some stores

• Aldi, Walmart, and Kirkland private label brands are experiencing less lost sales compared to CPG brands

SNAP recipients are shopping at more regional and ethnic grocery stores

• Regional and ethnic grocery stores are experiencing a growth in SNAP customers. SNAP customers make of 36% of projected trips for retailers like Whole Foods, according to the article.

SNAP consumers are shifting from eating out to eating in

• SNAP recipients are backing off from eating out 4+ times per week (37% of SNAP recipients) to grocery shopping and eating in.

Based on the data, SNAP recipients are key customers for grocery stores, convenience stores, bodegas, pharmacies, and other specialty retailers. These customers can provide many benefits for your store, so if you aren’t accepting EBT you’re missing out on revenue. Becoming a SNAP retailer may seem overwhelming, but goEBT makes the process easy with these free resources for retailers.

Learn more about unlimited EBT processing for retailers

SEEING IF YOU QUALIFY

Food and Nutrition Services (FNS) requires retailers to stock certain inventory items in order to qualify to apply to become a SNAP retailer. Retailers must stock 3 stocking units of 3 varieties of the 4 staple good categories, which are fruits and vegetables, dairy products, breads and cereals, and meat/poultry/fish. See if you qualify by taking this free SNAP retailer requirements quiz

An example of this would be…

Fruits + Vegetables

• 3 x fresh bananas
• 3 x 100% orange juice
• 3 x 100% apple juice

Dairy

• 3 x yogurt
• 3 x milk
• 3 x formula

Breads + Cereals

• 3 x bread
• 3 x pasta
• 3 x bagels

Meat/Poultry/Fish

• 3 x fresh or liquid eggs
• 3 x canned tuna
• 3 x beef jerky

Get a more detailed overview of the FNS stocking requirements.

THE APPLICATION PROCESS

The application process can be completed in 5 simple steps…

1. Register for a USDA eAuthentification account
2. Gather required documentation and information
3. Visit the USDA website and sign-in to complete your application
4. Check the status of your application
5. Get started with EBT processing

View your detailed step-by-step guide to accepting EBT payments.

FNS REAUTHORIZATION

Food and Nutrition Services (FNS) requires SNAP retailers to be reauthorized every 5 years or so. If you’re currently a SNAP retailer who’s approaching the 5 year mark, check out these free resources to understand FNS reauthorization a bit better.

Already a SNAP retailer? Get started with unlimited EBT processing from goEBT

According to the Annie E. Casey Foundation, food deserts are commonly found in areas with…

• Smaller populations
• Higher rates of abandoned/vacant home
• Residents who have lower incomes, lower levels of education, and higher rates of unemployment

Nearly 39.5 million people in the United States are living in low-income or low-access areas, according to USDA research. There are approximately 6,500 food deserts in the United States that are impacting 13.5 million people that live directly in these food deserts. That is a large number of people living with limited access to nutritious foods that are crucial to proper health and development.

According to the Annie E. Casey Foundation, Researchers identify food deserts by factoring in a variety of things including…

• Access to food, as measured by distance to a store or by the number of stores in an area
• Household resources, including family income and vehicle availability
• Neighborhood resources, such as average neighborhood income and access to public transportation

How can you help?

• If you are a store owner, apply to accept EBT benefits
• Try to increase access to stores in these areas by encouraging improved public transportation systems
• If you are a c-store owner in a food desert, add more fresh foods to your inventory
• If you are a farmer, consider setting up a market or pop-up stand in these areas several times a month
• Get involved with your community to promote increased access to healthy foods in these areas and work to add more stores in the area and educate community leaders on the importance of access to healthy foods

Learn More About Food Deserts

Improves yields

Farmers can use technology to track various yields. This way, they can run trials with different fertilizers, harvesting methods, or improved seeds to determine which combination works best. Then, farmers will be able to determine which method produces the highest yield and can use that method going forward.

Cuts food loss and waste

Optimizing the harvesting process is a great way to maximize yields and reduce food waste. By learning which method best improves yields, farmers can continuously produce maximum yields, therefore reducing food loss. This is a great way to produce as much as possible.

Helps farmers receive fair pay

Digital agriculture helps farmers receive a fairer pay by lowering transaction costs and providing more information to optimize their yields, which prevents loss. It also can ensure that their crop ends up in the correct market at the correct price. This technology also improves food security, yields, and creates a more environmentally conscious market that allows for a more secure and sustainable market for farmers to receive fair pay from.

Improves food security

By maximizing yields and optimizing the supply chain, digital agriculture can in turn improve food security. Farmers minimize waste by tracking yield data and constantly optimizing farming processes which allows for more food to successfully make its way to the market.

Farm-to-table tracking

Another cool benefit of this technology is that it can allow farmers and consumers to track the produce. They can watch the production and travel process from seed to consumer delivery. This is an interactive way for farmers to ensure their produce successfully and safely arrives to the consumer and a neat way for consumers to make environmentally conscious purchases and watch their produce go from farm to table.

While digital agriculture does have several benefits, there are also a few drawbacks. For one, we need to make sure we create a fair market where this technology would be available to all and would not make an already existing divide worse. There are also data privacy and security issues, but if we work to overcome these obstacles then the benefits should outweigh the consequences. The main benefit of achieving a sustainable and secure food system makes the risk of digital agriculture seem worth it. If we can achieve food security, we can continue to build a healthy and sustainable future that benefits both farmers and consumers.

Read More About Food Sustainability

Increased access to healthy foods

Farmers markets are an excellent way to provide healthy, nutritious foods to everyone. The markets increase access to local, fresh grown produce, meats, dairy products, and more. Farmers can take this impact a step further, by accepting SNAP and EBT benefits and making more fresh fruits and vegetables available to underserved areas. When SNAP/EBT is are accepted at farmers markets, the amount of fruits and vegetables consumed by low-income individuals increases. SNAP recipients are able to consume more fruits and vegetables in this case because farmers markets provide a new method of access.

Create a sense of community

Farmers markets are a great way to get plugged into your local community. Whether its chatting about the best meat cut or vegetable pairing or learning about the farming process, the farmers market is a great way for farmers and consumers to connect. Additionally, you support your local community when you use/accept EBT for SNAP benefits at the local market. By accepting EBT, you open the door to a wider audience, creating a welcoming community and a market that everyone can visit.

Boost the local economy

Markets where SNAP is accepted experience an increase in revenue. This is because these markets are opening their doors to a whole new market which brings in more customers and more revenue. In fact, $24.4 million in SNAP benefits were redeemed at farmers markets across the US in 2017, a 35.2% increase from 2012. This increase was made possible by not only support from local and national governments but also farmers markets that provide incentives for SNAP redemptions, as well as FNS by increasing educational resources on farmers markets and EBT.

All in all, farmers markets are great community pillars, even more so when they help their neighbors and welcome the underserved in their communities by accepting EBT.

Learn more about farmers markets and SNAP