With Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) funding expected to run out in less than a week due to the U.S. government shutdown, retailers and consumers alike are bracing for impact.
Delivery platform DoorDash on Sunday announced an Emergency Food Response for those affected.
The effort includes free delivery for Project DASH food bank and food pantry partners nationwide, as well as partnerships with grocers to waive delivery and service fees on about 300,000 orders for SNAP recipients in November.
“No one should go hungry in America—period,” said Max Rettig, vice president and global head of public policy at DoorDash. “Millions of families are worried right now about how they’ll put food on the table. Fighting hunger is core to our mission at DoorDash, and we’re stepping up alongside leading grocers and retailers to help bridge the gap. We know this is a stopgap, not a solution. But doing nothing simply isn’t an option.”
Customers who have linked a SNAP/EBT card to their DoorDash profile can shop at Sprouts Farmers Market, Dollar General, Schnucks, Ahold Delhaize brands, Hy-Vee and Wegmans, with delivery fees waived for one order.
DoorDash will also donate fresh food, shelf-stable items and household essentials from its DashMart locations to local food banks in affected communities.
The shutdown would halt SNAP benefits starting Nov. 1 for more than 40 million Americans, including 21 million children, 16 million working families and 5 million seniors.
"SNAP is essential to keeping families fed, and convenience stores play a critical role in the program providing food access to their communities across the nation," said Margaret Hardin Mannion, director of Government Relations for NACS. "We hope that any disruption of the program is kept to an absolute minimum, so that families can continue to purchase the food they need and so that retailers can continue to serve their SNAP customers without interruption."
Ultra-fast convenience delivery provider GoPuff announced a temporary initiative to provide grocery credits to SNAP recipients during November. The company said it will allocate up to $10 million in total relief, offering $50 in credits for SNAP-eligible grocery items. The credits will be distributed in two $25 installments during the month: one available from Nov. 1-15, and the second from Nov. 16-30. Customers can apply the discounts using the codes SNAPRELIEF1 and SNAPRELIEF2, respectively.
Several states have warned SNAP recipients that their November benefits will not be distributed until the shutdown ends.
“A powerful economic engine for communities big and small, SNAP supports over 388,000 American jobs, generating over $20 billion and $4.5 billion in wages and tax revenue, respectively,” said National Grocers Association President and CEO Greg Ferrara in a statement. “NGA urges Congress to act swiftly to ensure continuous funding for SNAP and [Women, Infants and Children] WIC so that families can continue to put food on the table. Protecting these programs is an investment in the health, stability, and well-being of Main Street communities across the country.”
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) could access a $6 billion contingency fund to make partial SNAP payments for November, according to reports, but that falls short of the $8 billion needed.
On Monday, the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW), which represents 1.2 million essential workers in the U.S., including workers in grocery, retail, meatpacking and food processing, sent a letter to the USDA asking the agency to use the contingency fund and funding for other USDA nutrition programs to fund SNAP for November.
“Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins has the authority and funding available to make sure families receive food assistance as we approach Thanksgiving and the holiday season. Funding has already been redirected to maintain WIC benefits during this shutdown—SNAP should be no different," UFCW International President Milton Jones said in a statement. “Congress can come back together to end this shutdown, get food assistance to families, and prevent skyrocketing health care costs, but Republicans have shown no willingness to do so. Their failure means that Secretary Rollins has to act. The USDA must do the right thing and ensure all food assistance recipients receive their full benefit next month.”
USDA leaders are blaming Democrats, claiming they refused to support the Republican-backed federal budget because it eliminates funding for health insurance plans under the Affordable Care Act.
“An important role of the government is to provide a safety net for those with the least among us,” USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins said during an October press conference. “We’re going to run out of money in two weeks, so you’re talking about millions of vulnerable families who will not have access to these programs because of this shutdown.”
Rollins also claimed Democratic lawmakers were prioritizing health care for undocumented immigrants and other issues.
The Trump administration has redirected funds from tariff revenues to support the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) nutrition assistance program during the shutdown, but there is no indication this will continue in November.
SNAP benefits have been under pressure for months.
Starting in fiscal year 2028, payments could be reduced in many states due to new requirements mandating a 6% threshold for error rates beginning in November. Only a handful of states currently meet that benchmark, according to several reports.
Error rates include both overpayments and underpayments of SNAP funds, though overpayments are more common. States that fail to stay below the 6% threshold would have to cover 5% to 15% of SNAP benefit costs. The average error rate was nearly 11% in 2024.
The Congressional Budget Office said some states may reduce or eliminate SNAP benefits for about 300,000 people. Subsidies through child nutrition programs could also drop for around 96,000 children.
The federal budget bill, known as the One Big, Beautiful Bill Act, calls for an estimated $186 billion in cuts through 2034.
In addition, 12 states have submitted waivers to the USDA seeking to ban the use of SNAP funds for purchasing soft drinks, candy, energy drinks and other similar items.
Industry associations are also calling on Congress to prohibit additional fees from levied for SNAP EBT transactions. A letter signed by over 1,000 businesses and organizations was sent to U.S. lawmakers on behalf of the National Grocers Association, FMI—The Food Industry Association and the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS).
The letter requests that the bipartisan Ensuring Fee-Free Benefit Transactions (EBT) Act be enacted in a multi-year Farm Bill or other vehicle this year to permanently prohibit states and state contractors from levying processing and other related fees from a state’s side of a SNAP EBT transaction onto SNAP authorized retailers and their merchant processors.
“SNAP authorized retailers are committed to strengthening the integrity and viability of the program for millions of Americans in every community. Retailers invest significant resources to participate in SNAP, including bearing the cost of equipment updates, software, training for store associates, and processing fees and other costs from retailers’ side of a SNAP EBT transaction. SNAP retailers should not then be assessed processing fees on top of these costs from a state’s side of a SNAP EBT transaction,” said Christine Pollack, vice president of government relations, FMI—The Food Industry Association.
A report published earlier this month by NACS, FMI and the National Grocers Association (NGA), found that proposed SNAP restrictions could cost convenience stores $1 billion in up-front costs, as well as $378.6 million in annual compliance maintenance.
Heather Lalley contributed to this report, which was originally published in sister publication Supermarket News.
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