Cub grocery now accepting SNAP for online orders

The supermarket joins a host of other retailers approved to accept the food assistance payments for online orders.

The Minnesota Star Tribune
November 1, 2024 at 5:17PM
Bruce Bisping/Star Tribune. Minneapolis, MN., Friday, 4/1/2005. For years supermarkets have touted fresh produce as a way to counter the traditional price advantage of Wal-mart. One only has to look at the success of Whole Foods Market to see what fresh produce has done for a company's image and bottom line. Recognizing this trend, Supervalu is launching a stand-alone company to focus exclusively on produce which will get fresh produce to Cub stores more quickly. . But Wal-Mart is looking to blu
SNAP benefits can be used for fresh produce and packaged foods. (Star Tribune/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Cub now accepts SNAP payments for online orders at Cub.com, joining a growing list of Minnesota retailers and delivery apps that can accept the food assistance cards.

Formerly known as food stamps, the federal program is used by nearly a half-million Minnesotans to afford groceries.

“We’re happy to make access to nutritious food even more accessible to more of our customers, and this is a big step as part of that offering,” said Andre Persaud, president of retail for Cub parent UNFI.

Cub’s 54 corporate-owned stores have started accepting SNAP for online orders, and they should soon be joined by franchised locations, the company said.

Other major grocery chains — including Walmart, Target, Costco, Sam’s Club, Hy-Vee, Lunds & Byerlys, Coborn’s and Jerry’s — already won U.S. Department of Agriculture approval to accept the EBT cards that carry SNAP benefits for online orders.

The addition of Cub furthers the department’s “goal of making healthy food more accessible and helping participants better manage their grocery budget,” USDA Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services Deputy Under Secretary Cindy Long said in a news release.

SNAP benefits were a lifeline for many consumers, and food companies, during the pandemic and have remained essential for many families during historic levels of inflation.

Yet as online ordering became a new normal for grocery shopping during the pandemic, in many cases SNAP was not accepted for online orders until the past few years outside select states and retailers piloting the program.

Retailers need to apply to USDA in order to allow customers to pay with SNAP benefits for online ordering. Delivery services like Shipt and Instacart can also accept SNAP for orders at certain retailers.

Only certain fresh and packaged foods are eligible for SNAP dollars; online orders typically require a second payment source to cover delivery costs and items not covered by the program.

about the writer

Brooks Johnson

Food and Manufacturing Reporter

Brooks Johnson is a business reporter covering Minnesota’s food industry, 3M and manufacturing trends.

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Bruce Bisping/Star Tribune. Minneapolis, MN., Friday, 4/1/2005. For years supermarkets have touted fresh produce as a way to counter the traditional price advantage of Wal-mart. One only has to look at the success of Whole Foods Market to see what fresh produce has done for a company's image and bottom line. Recognizing this trend, Supervalu is launching a stand-alone company to focus exclusively on produce which will get fresh produce to Cub stores more quickly. . But Wal-Mart is looking to blu

The supermarket joins a host of other retailers approved to accept the food assistance payments for online orders.