Meijer Now Accepting SNAP Payments for Flashfood Program

Meijer Inc. is taking the lead on making fresh food more accessible as it becomes the first retailer in the United States to accept Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits for food available through the Flashfood app.

Flashfood allows customers to purchase food nearing its sell-by date at up to 50% off via its app, which will now accept SNAP recipients’ Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) cards as a form of payment.

[Read more: "USDA Piloting Contactless SNAP Payments in 5 States"]

"We want to make healthy, high-quality groceries an affordable reality for every American family and adding SNAP benefits to Flashfood gets us one step closer to that vision," said Josh Domingues, Flashfood founder and CEO. "We're incredibly grateful to Meijer for being our first partner to expand access to Flashfood with SNAP EBT, and for their industry-leading commitment to reducing food insecurity and increasing access to healthy food."

Meijer launched the Flashfood program in 2019 and the service is now available at all of its supercenters and Meijer Grocery locations. The retailer offers items including meat, produce, seafood, deli and bakery products at steep discounts on the Flashfood app, and to date, has diverted nearly 5.6 million pounds of food from potentially entering landfills.

"As a company committed to enriching lives in the communities we serve, we're pleased to be the first retailer to expand our Flashfood program in this way," Meijer President and CEO Rick Keyes said. "Feeding people has always been at the heart of what we do, and this is another way Meijer is working to provide extra value to those customers who need it most."

Tops Markets LLC recently expanded its own Flashfood programto 18 more Rochester, N.Y.-area stores, while Stop & Shop brought the digital marketplace to 34 more stores in Massachusetts, following its implementation in 70 locations across its footprint.

Meanwhile, Flashfood has added Nicholas Bertram to its leadership team in the newly created position of president and COO. Bertram brings more than 20 years of experience in the retail industry, including stints at Jewel-Osco, Walmart and most recently as president of The Giant Co., an Ahold Delhaize brand.

Privately owned Meijer operates more than 400 supercenters, neighborhood markets and Express locations throughout Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky and Wisconsin. The company is No. 20 on The PG 100, Progressive Grocer’s 2022 list of the top food and consumables retailers in North America.