The online food delivery platform of Uber Technologies Inc. it is collaborating to enable payment processing with EBT cards, the means of payment through which recipients of SNAP benefits, formerly known as food stamps, receive their allowances each month. Uber Eats is partnering with San Francisco-based payments company Forage to begin accepting federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, commonly known as food stamps, and electronic benefit transfers (EBT) as a form of payment for eligible orders starting in late 2024.
Forage is a specialized EBT payments company that provides software and a team of dedicated in-house experts to guide platforms and retailers through the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) authorization process to accept federal benefit payments. “At Uber, we believe healthy foods should be accessible to all,” said Karl Hebert, VP of payments, risk and identity at Uber. “We are excited to partner with Forage to provide our customers the same seamless payments experience they’ve become accustomed to on Uber when using their SNAP benefits.”
“We’re incredibly excited to partner with Uber Eats to bring online purchasing and delivery to more SNAP recipients,” said Forage co-founder and CEO, Ofek Lavian. “We know that accepting SNAP benefits online is incredibly important for millions of Americans and are extremely proud that through our partnership, Uber will be able to unlock EBT acceptance for all retailers on their platform and help more Americans put food on their table.”
Instacart, DoorDash Delivery Apps Accept SNAP Benefits
Instacart and DoorDash are two main competitors of Uber Eats that have expanded their payment options to include SNAP and EBT in some specific orders. Instacart has expanded its online SNAP acceptance to more than 170 retailers, covering more than 14,000 stores across the U.S. and reaching 96% of SNAP-receiving households in the country.
Recently, Instacart has started accepting SNAP benefits for same-day delivery at some retailers such as Food City, Gordon Food Service, Hy-Vee, Schnucks and other Kroger affiliates, including Baker’s, City Market, Dillons, Fred Meyer, Gerbes, Harris Teeter, King Soopers, Marianos, Metro Market, Pick n’ Save, Smith’s and QFC.
On the other hand, DoorDash has also expanded its list of retailers that accept SNAP/EBT payments, including ACME Markets, Food City, Hy-Vee, Jewel-Osco, Kings Food Markets, Pavilions, Randalls, Shaw’s, Sprouts Farmers Market, Star Market, Stater Bros. Markets, Tom Thumb and Vons. With these new additions, more than 6,000 locations across the United States now support SNAP/EBT payments via DoorDash for on-demand grocery delivery.
Even when shopping online, you must respect the USDA’s restrictions on what you can and cannot buy. Remember that food stamps are designed to cover the food needs of families.
You can buy a variety of foods and beverages with SNAP benefits, but there are certain products that are not allowed. Here’s what you can and can’t buy with SNAP:
- You can buy:
- Foods such as fresh or frozen fruits and vegetables.
- Meats, poultry and fish.
- Bread and cereals.
- Dairy products such as milk, cheese and yogurt.
- Drinks such as water, 100% natural fruit juice and milk.
- Seeds and plants to grow food at home.
- You can’t buy:
- Alcoholic beverages.
- Tobacco and tobacco products.
- Hot food to eat on the premises.
- Personal hygiene items and household cleaning.
- Vitamins and food supplements.
- Pet food.