Washington, March 8, 2023 - The USDA Food and Nutrition Service is partnering with five states to test mobile payment technology in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, also known as SNAP. In the next few years, SNAP participants in Illinois, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Missouri, and Oklahoma will have the option to use mobile payments methods – like tapping or scanning their personal mobile device – as an alternative to their physical SNAP card.

SNAP serves millions of low-income families and children each month. Mobile payments — widely considered a safe, secure, and convenient way to shop for groceries — is one way we can help make it easier for busy families to put healthy food on the table. The technology also has the potential to help protect families from having their SNAP benefits stolen because of card skimming and other fraud.

“Today’s announcement represents another step forward for the future of SNAP and the many ways our programs are embracing modern and innovative ideas to improve nutrition security,” said Stacy Dean, USDA deputy undersecretary for food, nutrition, and consumer services. “Digital wallets are changing the way we pay for everything, including groceries. We want to ensure SNAP leverages the latest technology to improve access to benefits, reduce fraud, and provide a better overall experience for the families we serve.”

The Mobile Payment Pilots are complex projects involving a wide range of stakeholders carefully coordinating efforts. FNS will work with state agencies as well as EBT processors, mobile wallet providers, retailers, and more to support a successful rollout in the pilot states. Neither retailers nor SNAP households are required to participate in the pilots — stores can decide whether to adopt the new technology and make contactless payments available to their SNAP customers, and shoppers can continue to use their EBT card if that’s how they prefer to pay.

The five selected states had this to share:

• “We appreciate the USDA Food and Nutrition Service for extending this opportunity to Missouri as part of their initial rollout,” said Robert J. Knodell, acting director of the Missouri Department of Social Services. “We are excited to work together to provide Missourians with the flexibility and security of a mobile payment option while utilizing their SNAP benefits.”
• “Illinois is pleased to participate in the SNAP Mobile Payment Pilot and help advance access to healthy food throughout the communities we serve,” said Tim Verry, director of Family and Community Services, Illinois Department of Human Services. “In addition to offering a more modern way for SNAP participants to pay in the checkout line, mobile payment technology builds on Illinois’ efforts in fraud prevention by using more secure payment technology.”
• “We are thrilled to be chosen to participate in the SNAP Mobile Payment Pilot,” said Louisiana Department of Children & Family Services Secretary Terri Ricks. “Over the past few years, we’ve focused on ways of using technology to make SNAP applications and purchases easier for the families we serve, including through text messaging reminders, a mobile app for managing benefits, online SNAP purchasing and even a virtual D-SNAP process following disasters. The goal of the Mobile Payment Pilot is to build on these efforts by making purchases more convenient and reducing the time involved in receiving access to benefits.”
• “Our Administration is committed to centering equity in all that we do. Allowing households to buy groceries using SNAP benefits through their mobile device not only creates a more dignified and secure checkout experience, but also provides low-income families access to the same purchasing technologies as other customers,” said Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey. “Massachusetts being selected as one of the Mobile Payment Pilot states highlights how we have been a leader in technology innovation, and I look forward to working with our federal partners to continue delivering results for our residents.”
• “Oklahoma is excited to be a pilot state in the effort to create a quicker, more efficient and secure way of providing SNAP benefits to our state’s most vulnerable citizens,” said Tom Pennington, Oklahoma Human Services financial administrator. “This effort not only reduces the risk of fraud by protecting customer’s accounts through multi-level authentication, it also reduces the stigma associated with SNAP benefits and promotes dignity for our customers while they are trying to put food on the table for their families. We are proud to dedicate the resources and staff required for this pilot to continually modernize our programs and find ways to better serve our customers.”

The mobile payment pilots are one of many actions FNS is taking to modernize SNAP and make it easier for families to buy the foods they need for good health. Other SNAP modernization efforts include expanding SNAP online shopping, partnering with the National Grocers Association Foundation to help small and/or rural retailers get started with SNAP online shopping, and exploring EBT card technology and safeguards.

FNS is also investing in major modernization and innovation efforts across all our programs that support nutrition security for children and families, including the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, known as WIC. For example, FNS recently announced proposed changes that, if finalized, would allow online ordering in WIC. These modernizations are designed to help connect more eligible mothers and young children with the proven benefits of WIC and improve the service they receive throughout their entire experience with the program, which is an integral part of the agency’s urgent and ongoing work to create a healthier future for America’s children through equitable access to nutrition.

FNS’s efforts to modernize federal nutrition programs support the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to designing and delivering services with a focus on the actual experience of the people it serves. The administration believes government must deliver services more equitably and effectively, especially for those who have been historically underserved.

USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service works to end hunger and improve food and nutrition security through a suite of more than 15 nutrition assistance programs, such as the school breakfast and lunch programs, WIC and SNAP. Together, these programs serve 1 in 4 Americans over the course of a year, promoting consistent and equitable access to healthy, safe, and affordable food essential to optimal health and well-being. FNS also provides science-based nutrition recommendations through the co-development of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. FNS’s report, “Leveraging the White House Conference to Promote and Elevate Nutrition Security: The Role of the USDA Food and Nutrition Service,” highlights ways the agency will support the Biden-Harris Administration’s National Strategy, released in conjunction with the historic White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health in September 2022. To learn more about FNS, visit www.fns.usda.gov and follow @USDANutrition. 

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Washington, DC, May 20, 2020 – U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue today announced that households in 13 new states – Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and Virginia – will soon be able to purchase food online with their Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits. Once operational, online purchasing will be available in 36 states and the District of Columbia, home to more than 90% of SNAP participants.

In addition, Secretary Perdue also announced an expansion of independently owned and operated retail stores beyond those included in the original pilot. Soon more SNAP authorized retailers, under multiple store banners, will be accepting SNAP benefits online.

“We are expanding new flexibilities and innovative programs to make sure Americans across this country have safe and nutritious food during this national emergency,” said Secretary Perdue. “Enabling people to purchase foods online will go a long way in helping Americans follow CDC social distancing guidelines and help slow the spread of the coronavirus. USDA is mandated with the noble goal of feeding Americans when they need it most, and we are fulfilling that mission with new innovative programs during this national emergency.”

Background

On April 18, 2019, Secretary Sonny Perdue announced the launch of the two-year SNAP online purchasing pilot that began in New York before being rolled out to additional states. As part of its response to COVID-19, USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) has worked closely with all interested states, retailers, and benefit processors to make online purchasing a reality for more SNAP households.

In less than six weeks, amidst an unprecedented situation, USDA has expanded SNAP online purchasing to 36 states and the District of Columbia – nearly three-quarters of the states, covering 90% of SNAP households.

Currently, the SNAP online purchasing pilot is operational in 18 states and the District of Columbia, with additional states going live each week. For the latest list of states and retailers accepting online SNAP purchases, please refer to our online purchasing website.

For retailers and states that are not yet able to participate in online purchasing, FNS recommends utilizing other options that retailers may already provide, such as Pay at Pick-up (also known as “Click and Collect”), where SNAP cardholders can shop online and then pay for their purchase using their EBT card at pick-up. SNAP recipients also have the ability to add an authorized user to their card to make purchases on their behalf.

During these challenging times, FNS has approved over 2,800 program flexibilities across its 15 nutrition assistance programs. For up to date information and to learn more about flexibilities being used in FNS nutrition programs, please visit http://www.fns.usda.gov/coronavirus or follow us at @USDANutrition.

FNS administers 15 nutrition assistance programs that leverage American’s agricultural abundance to ensure children and low-income individuals and families have nutritious food to eat. FNS also co-develops the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which provide science-based nutrition recommendations and serve as the cornerstone of federal nutrition policy.

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