Tops Expands EBT Payment for SNAP Customers Shopping via Instacart
Tops Markets LLC has expanded its EBT payment option for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) customers shopping online via Instacart. SNAP recipients can now pay for same-day pickup or delivery orders with an EBT card via Instacart at a total of 16 Tops locations in Pennsylvania and Vermont.
This move comes in the wake of the program’s launch in New York state, where SNAP online is available at 126 Tops stores.
“Tops Friendly Markets is excited to continue to expand these services in our Pennsylvania and Vermont Instacart stores,” said Jill Sirica, manager, digital marketing at the grocer. “At the core of Tops’ mission is combating food insecurity, and this will help bridge that gap of helping families gain accessibility to healthy and affordable food, something we have strived for since we began our partnership with Instacart. We are truly excited to see it come to fruition.”
“Providing people access to the food they love is at the core of Instacart’s mission,” noted David Healy, retail partnerships at San Francisco-based Instacart. “We’re proud to partner with Tops Friendly Markets to provide more families with a convenient and accessible way to get their fresh food and pantry staples. Expanding EBT SNAP to reach same-day online grocery delivery and pickup is important to help people access the food they need, and we look forward to expanding this payment integration to even more retailers across Vermont and Pennsylvania.”
By associating an EBT card to an Instacart account, either website or mobile app, a SNAP recipient confirms that the card information is current and valid. To successfully use the EBT card at a Tops location online, a credit or debit card must be linked to the Instacart account to cover nonfood fees such as bottle deposits in some states, taxes, delivery tips, and any other non-EBT SNAP-eligible items that may be purchased per federal SNAP guidelines. Customers can then enter a ZIP code to determine whether they’re near a participating Tops, and begin shopping and selecting items from Tops’ EBT-eligible products. Once items are added to the cart, customers can select how much of their benefits they’d like to allocate to the order. Orders for delivery and pickup can be placed by customers for delivery in as fast as an hour or arranged several days in advance.
To help subsidize costs for EBT SNAP participants, Instacart will waive delivery or pickup fees through Sept. 16, up to the first three EBT SNAP orders for each customer with a valid EBT card associated with their Instacart account.
Williamsville, N.Y.-based Tops Markets operates 157 supermarkets, with five additional franchise stores, and employs 15,000 associates in New York, northern Pennsylvania, and western Vermont. The company is No. 66 on The PG 100, Progressive Grocer’s 2021 list of the top food and consumables retailers in North America.
