Texas-based supermarket chain H-E-B will now let customers pay for groceries for curbside or home delivery using SNAP benefits online or via a mobile phone, according to a press release.
Customers looking to use the service have to have an account on heb.com or the My H-E-B app, the release says. There are currently over 230 stores with curbside service and the company plans to add more. Home delivery fees, meanwhile, include a $5 fee.
While signing up, they’ll enter their SNAP EBT along with other payment info. After they’re done, they’ll have the ability to place an order and choose SNAP EBT as their payment method at checkout, where they’ll also make a PIN. However, a credit, debit or gift card will be needed for items that aren’t SNAP eligible.
“This has been one of the most important initiatives that our team has worked on and we are excited to be able to offer this convenience and service to all of our customers,” said Esther Castelo, vice president, H-E-B Digital Commerce Operations.
The app also offers the ability to look up their SNAP EBT balance on the H-E-B app or website, and customers can use a filter to see only the items eligible for SNAP.
The grocery business began to see early on how the pandemic would change things for the industry. Once the initial shock of the supply issues wore off by mid-April, many stores began to see less overall shopping visits and, in a trade, more digital usage of apps to shop.
According to data from PYMNTS, millennials accounted for 32.9 percent of the digital shift. In contrast, despite only having around 8 percent representation in the grocery shopping market, Gen Z made up 14 percent of the shift.
After federal stimulus funds were sent out to many Americans early in the pandemic, data showed that food was the number one pick to spend the money on, according to PYMNTS. With restaurants closed, meal kit companies made a killing and supermarkets also tried to get in on the trend of selling people pre-made meals.