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IL partners with ALDI to aid SNAP recipients

Information provided by the Illinois Department of Human Services

CHICAGO, Ill. (December 14, 2020) – Governor JB Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Human Services announced that Illinois residents have a new retail option for using Electronic Benefit Transfer and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (EBT SNAP) online through Instacart. In a new partnership with ALDI, participants will be able to access fresh food and pantry staples from ALDI via Instacart’s same-day delivery and pick-up services.

SNAP
Shoppers wait to enter the Lansing ALDI (3602 Ridge Road) in May. The grocery store will now aid SNAP recipients. (Photo: Melanie Jongsma)

“The health and wellness of Illinois families is a top priority of my administration and I am pleased to announce this partnership which offers increased options for SNAP recipients to acquire groceries via online pickup or delivery,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “Especially amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s important that all Illinois families have access to healthy, nutritious options, regardless of their background.”

As part of this new program, EBT SNAP participants in Illinois will be able to shop from ALDI via the Instacart online site and mobile app. To begin, eligible SNAP customers can visit www.DHS.Illinois.gov/OnlineSNAP.

Once an Instacart customer profile is created, customers can enter their EBT food card information as a form of payment in their profile. (Customers will need a secondary form of payment for non-food items such as taxes, tips, and fees for delivery, per federal guidelines.) Customers can shop and select items from ALDI’s EBT SNAP-eligible products. After filling their online shopping carts, customers can choose grocery delivery or pickup for their order and determine how much of their SNAP benefit they would like to allocate to the order.

Illinois’ initial Online SNAP EBT option launched in June 2020 including Amazon and Walmart. The Illinois Department of Human Services will continue working to encourage even more Illinois retailers to participate. Currently, any SNAP-authorized retailer can allow for customers to complete orders online and pay at the store when they pick up. The online EBT capability allows the customer to complete the entire transaction online and avoid completing the purchase at the retailer location.

The introduction of Instacart’s EBT SNAP payments comes at a time when food insecurity across the nation continues to be impacted by COVID-19.

Lansing has an ALDI located at 3602 Ridge Road. Calumet City has an ALDI at 1490 Torrence Avenue.

Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS)
Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS)https://www.dhs.state.il.us/page.aspx
The Department of Human Services is one of Illinois' largest agencies, with more than 13,000 employees. IDHS provides residents with streamlined access to integrated services, especially those who face challenges to self-sufficiency. IDHS sends news releases to The Lansing Journal, and we publish those that are informative for our readers.