Meijer and Auburn University’s Hunger Solutions Institute are partnering to expand the Healthy Fluid Milk Incentives Projects, a program designed to benefit SNAP participants.
Meijer is the only retailer in its six-state footprint of Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, Kentucky, and Wisconsin that the university is partnering with on the project that provides SNAP beneficiaries with a dollar-for-dollar match when they purchase fluid milk.
The USDA announced the award Wednesday, using $4 million in FY2023 congressional appropriations to Auburn University’s hunger solutions arm to bring the milk initiative to an additional 575 retail outlets in 16 states, including locations in rural communities, counties with persistently high poverty rates, low-income and low access census tracts, and Tribal Nations and surrounding tribal communities. Following implementation of this award, HFMI will operate in 700 stores in 19 states with additional locations slated to join by early 2024.
Meijer applied for the grant to provide its SNAP customers with an incentive to purchase dairy products. This is in addition to the other incentives Meijer is offering its SNAP customers, which include 10 percent off produce and free home delivery, according to the retailer.
“As a company committed to enriching lives in the communities we serve, providing our customers with healthy grocery options is at the heart of what we do,” said Becky Bronkema, director of merchandising for dairy/frozen at Meijer, in a statement. “We are excited to partner on this important project during the holiday season to help families get easier access to milk, which offers so much nutritional value.”
The International Dairy Foods Association, led by president and CEO Michael Dykes, D.V.M., lauded the expansion of the HFMI program, noting the important role dairy incentives play in improving health outcomes for Americans experiencing increasing levels of food and nutrition insecurity in the United States.
“Expanding the SNAP Healthy Fluid Milk Incentives Projects means greater access to affordable, nutritious dairy products for the most vulnerable Americans,” said Dykes in a statement. “During this time of chronic food insecurity, it’s critical we find ways to stretch the SNAP dollar further in support of the purchase of nutrient-dense foods.”
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