SNAP/EBT

Accepting Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) funds from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as “food stamps,” is a federal program administered by the United States Department of Agriculture’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) to increase opportunities for low-income people to purchase nutritious food. A growing number of farmers’ markets and farmers’ market vendors are beginning to accept SNAP benefits as a way to make fresh and local food more accessible to people with low or no income.  There are two ways to accept SNAP benefits; a farmers market can accept SNAP benefits on behalf of the vendors and reimburse vendors for SNAP transactions, or a farmers market vendor can accept SNAP benefits directly from customers.

Accepting SNAP benefits provides a great opportunity to expand the customer base, increase sales, and make farmers’ markets accessible to more people. There are a few drawbacks to accepting SNAP benefits, as not all food items qualify as a SNAP-eligible purchase. The USDA requires brief training for businesses to identify which food products qualify in the SNAP program, and businesses must abide by eligibility guidelines to avoid fraud. Some recommendations for integrating SNAP into the POS include to:

  • Treat customers using SNAP the same as those using cash and credit
  • Devise an efficient and discrete means to make a SNAP transaction that does not alienate the customer
  • Clearly post all products that do and do not qualify as a SNAP-eligible purchase
  • Refrain from referring to SNAP as ‘food stamps’ because that term carries a negative connotation in some communities.

For more information on implementing SNAP at Florida farmers markets, visit the Farmers Market Legal Tool Kit

Important steps:

  1. Decide if SNAP/EBT acceptance is a good fit for your market or booth.
  2. Decide if your market will use a market-wide or individual-vendor approach.
  3. Determine the type of application you should use to apply with the USDA Food & Nutrition Service (FNS).
  4. Apply for authorization.
  5. Obtain equipment capable of processing SNAP/EBT transactions.
  6. Ensure you and vendors at your market understand SNAP/EBT regulations.

About SNAP/EBT

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as “food stamps,” is a federal program administered by the United States Department of Agriculture’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) to increase opportunities for low-income people to purchase nutritious food. Funds are distributed to customers via electronic deposit onto a plastic debit-style card, a process known as Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT). The USDA requires brief training for businesses to identify which food products qualify in the SNAP program, and businesses must abide by eligibility guidelines to avoid fraud.

The following products are excluded from SNAP/EBT:

  • Products labeled as “not for human consumption” or as “pet food”
  • Foods intended for immediate consumption or hot at the point of sale
  • Nonfood items

SNAP/EBT at Farmers Markets

A growing number of farmers markets and vendors are beginning to accept SNAP/EBT as a way to make fresh and local food more accessible to people with low or no income. There are two ways for farmers markets to accept SNAP/EBT:

  1. A farmers market can become authorized to accept SNAP/EBT on behalf of the vendors and then reimburse vendors for SNAP/EBT transactions, OR
  2. A farmers market vendor can become authorized to accept SNAP/EBT benefits directly from customers.
Benefits Drawbacks
Market-wide authorization
  • Having market staff running a centralized POS system does not require individual vendors to pay for the required equipment or transaction fees to accept SNAP/EBT.
  • Once a market is authorized with an FNS number, the process to enable a new vendor to accept benefits is very quick.
  • Since not all vendors might be selling foods that are eligible for SNAP/EBT transactions, ineligible vendors may be displeased with having to contribute to the program operating funds through booth fees or memberships.
  • One vendor’s failure to consistently abide by program rules could threaten the authorization of the market as a whole.
Individual vendor authorization
  • The individually-authorized vendor bears the responsibility for adhering to program rules to maintain authorization.
  • This option does not require the overall market to maintain funds to operate the program.
  • The process of applying for a new FNS number can take many months; this makes it difficult for vendors to get set up with accepting benefits in a timely manner.
  • This option puts under-resourced vendors at a disadvantage by requiring them to either carry the full financial burden of authorization or be excluded from the program.

For more information on implementing SNAP/EBT at Florida farmers markets, visit Feeding Florida’s SNAP Technical Support resources and the Farmers Market Legal Tool Kit.

Additional References & Resources