How SNAP benefits affect the grocery spending of mRelief clients
Key Takeaways
- mRelief clients reported the high cost of groceries motivated them to apply for SNAP.
- After approval, some clients shared that they were unsure about how to use their EBT card at checkout and about different options to check their card balance.
- Our clients shared using cost-reducing strategies to stretch their SNAP benefits, but were less likely to use a food pantry or other community resource to supplement their grocery budgets.
Recently, mRelief clients have shared that the increased cost of food and other goods and services is what motivated them to decide to apply for SNAP. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, prices for groceries rose 12.2% in the 12 months ending in June 2022, the largest increase since April 1979. As grocery prices rise, more families are struggling to pay their bills and purchase food. This reflects a general trend that shows that participation in SNAP increases and acts as a stabilizing resource during and immediately after a recession.
Our team recently spoke to 27 mRelief clients about how receiving SNAP has impacted their household grocery spending. We wanted to learn more about the impact receiving food assistance had for their households and how we might continue to serve them after approval. In this document we summarize our initial findings from those conversations.
SNAP recipients spend the majority of their benefit soon after the state loads funds to their EBT cards.
An existing analysis of EBT card usage from the USDA Food and Nutrition Service found that SNAP recipients redeemed 17% of benefits on the day states load the funds. Recipients ultimately redeemed 96% of their monthly benefit before receiving their next issuance.
This spending pattern aligns with what we heard. Nearly all of the recipients we interviewed spent their entire benefit amount each month. mRelief clients shared that they usually make one big trip to the grocery store after receiving their monthly benefit. They then make smaller grocery trips throughout the month for perishable items like fruits, vegetables, and meat. Clients discussed choosing where to shop based on a variety of factors, including convenience, value for price, and selection of items.
Notably, some clients shared that before being approved for SNAP, they compromised dietary quality to keep costs down, or financed grocery purchases by taking on further debt or by receiving money from friends or relatives. This finding supports the idea that by connecting households to food stamps benefits, mRelief is able to unlock crucial help for families that both supports their immediate need for food and their long-term physical and financial health.
“Everything is just so expensive, you know? It takes everything I have to survive. …It's just everything: gas, electricity, food and then the medical. Everything's gone up so much! It's just, it's not the same. Money doesn't go as far as it used to.”
— FL client (female, age 67) who applied through mRelief and was approved for $20/month.
mRelief clients use various strategies to stretch their grocery budgets.
Households we spoke to who receive close to the maximum benefit (or who are in a state that still has an emergency allotment waiver, which will only be available until the end of the public health emergency) shared that they try to stretch their SNAP benefits to make it to the next benefit issuance. However, many mRelief clients, particularly those whose sole source of income is from social security or disability benefits, receive a small benefit amount. A benefit of only $20 is, of course, difficult to stretch throughout the month.
Individuals shared that they shop sales, use coupons, buy in bulk, meal plan, and budget as strategies to maximize the value of money spent on groceries. Each of these strategies takes time and effort. However, several clients shared that they view using these strategies as being good stewards of the benefit they have been given.
mRelief does not currently provide any guidance or resources to clients to stretch their SNAP benefits or maximize the value of receiving SNAP, beyond what is available on our blog. However, we would welcome the opportunity to collaborate with other technology companies, especially those with a social mission, to provide further value to our clients.
mRelief clients are unlikely to use a food pantry due to psychological factors, lack of convenience, or perceived low quality.
Most of the individuals we spoke to had never used a food pantry before and would only consider doing so if they were desperate. They shared that they believe many people are facing hard times and are worse off than they are. Clients shared that they would feel bad taking what is perceived as limited resources at a food bank. This reflects a lack of awareness of the way many food pantries operate, especially those that are a part of national networks and receive funding to support food purchases. Regardless of the funding model, we know that many food pantries exist to serve families in these exact situations.
Compounding this psychological friction is the reality that food pantries can be inconveniently located (or not exist in rural areas at all), often operate with limited hours, and may have a limited selection of products.
mRelief does refer clients who screen as likely ineligible for SNAP to their local food pantry. However, we would like to do more to dispel the myth that food pantries are only for those facing extreme desperation. We are considering new features to encourage even those approved for SNAP to take advantage of this important community resource.
Clients track their EBT spending irregularly throughout the month, but most typically before or after a grocery trip.
We asked mRelief clients how they check their EBT card balance. Several noted that they have never checked their balance. Instead they choose to keep a mental note of how much they’ve spent and how much they have remaining on their card. However, the majority shared that they either use the official EBT Edge app or call the EBT card customer service line to check their balance before or after a grocery shopping trip.
Clients seemed satisfied with their ability to check their balance and with their experience using the EBT card at the grocery store. Many even praised the cashier at their local grocery store for patiently talking them through how to use their card for their first EBT transaction.
mRelief may consider providing information about how to use and manage an EBT card after someone tells us they were approved for SNAP. We could also consider a partnership with a third party EBT app as a potential added value to our clients.
Edward’s Story
One of the recipients we spoke to is Edward* (male, age 39), who applied for SNAP through mRelief and was approved for $813/month for a household of five. His story illustrates several of the themes we heard from all of the clients we interviewed.
*Name has been changed to protect client’s privacy
Edward, his wife, and three children applied for SNAP recently after a change in employment left them scrambling for resources to feed their family. This is the second time Edward has received SNAP. The first time was immediately following their move to South Carolina for a new job opportunity that fell through. “We were approved then, and we were on it for a little bit…then we came off it, employment was good. Unfortunately we had to reach out to them again [now]. I don’t like using it unless we absolutely have to…but we have unfortunately been on it before.”
Edward shared that before being approved for SNAP this time, he had been working odd jobs and receiving support from friends and relatives to keep his family fed. “To put it bluntly [prior to SNAP we were paying for groceries] by a lick and a prayer!”
Like many of the clients we spoke to, Edward shared that his family was food insecure, but “you know we weren’t starving, like not literally.” Despite his family’s difficult circumstance, he hadn’t visited a food pantry because he felt others needed that resource more urgently. Instead, Edward’s family is thoughtful about shopping sales, buying in bulk, and “constant research” to stretch their SNAP benefits throughout the month.
Before making his list and grocery shopping, Edward checks his benefit balance by calling the EBT card service line. When asked how checking his EBT balance could be better, he shared that he would like “an app where you could just log in…track all your expenses…and track inflation, so you can estimate how much you’re going to be spending next month.”
Overall, Edward said that with the increased cost of food and his current employment situation, receiving SNAP benefits “is a massive, massive help. Trying to feed a family of five is very difficult nowadays… [SNAP] enables us to make sure that we have good nutritious food always on the table.”
Help us connect more families to food stamps.
