Mercato, an ecommerce platform for independent grocers, recently announced an initiative to improve access to healthy foods and foster economic stability in low-income communities.
The program, called Thriving Communities, works with local governments, private funders, and nonprofits to bring more grocers onto the online grocery platform so they can digitize their inventory, offer delivery, and enable enrollment and utilization of SNAP online.
CEO Bobby Brannigan hopes this program inspires "The Mercato Effect”—whereby grocers going online provides residents access to a diverse selection of healthy foods and the ability to redeem food benefits which in turn creates more jobs, increases grocers' sales, and keeps dollars within the community.
"As the son of an independent grocer in Brooklyn, I know first-hand how critical these independent, local grocers are to the economic and social well-being of their communities," said Brannigan in a statement. "They are the lifeline for so many residents to get fresh, healthy, culturally relevant foods without having to travel far or wait weeks to go to the market. By giving local grocers the tools and technologies to operate online, they can increase their own revenue and fuel healthier ecosystems throughout the country."
New York City was the first to partner with Mercato, leveraging the program to test a pilot that offered subsidized groceries to a cohort of city residents.
"The pandemic challenged food security in unprecedented ways," said Kate MacKenzie, executive director of the New York City Mayor's Office of Food Policy, in a statement. "Mercato's innovative work piloting online grocery makes healthy, affordable groceries accessible to all New Yorkers, no matter where they live."
Mercato is looking to expand Thriving Communities by finding and collaborating with partners in other cities including Chicago, Boston, Baltimore, Philadelphia, and Los Angeles.
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