At Uber, we believe healthy foods should be accessible to all. Yet food insecurity has risen sharply over the past few years and is a challenge millions of Americans face each day. According to a recent report by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, more than 44 million people struggled to feed their families in 2022, including 13 million children, a jump of nearly 45 percent from 2021. 

Research by The Brookings Institution has also shown that digital technologies—including delivery apps like Uber Eats—can play a meaningful role by helping make fresh food available to millions who couldn’t have easily gotten it otherwise. Today, nearly 90 percent of Americans living in food deserts have access to digital food delivery services. We’re proud to have an opportunity to play a small part, using our technology and expertise to remove barriers for people facing hunger and food insecurity.

Over the years Uber has invested in supporting vulnerable populations and, coming to Uber Eats this year, will be introducing critical features like SNAP/EBT. We’re also bridging access gaps and supporting improved health outcomes through Uber Health by helping patients and health providers understand and access their benefit eligibility, assess the foods patients need, and have a customized order sent directly to them with Uber Eats. 

Today, we’re excited to share additional efforts that we’ve committed to implementing by 2025 to help more people have access to nutritious foods. These initiatives were shared as part of the 2024 White House Challenge to End Hunger and Build Healthy Communities.  

  • Offering access to SNAP/EBT grocery delivery to all eligible retail partners on the platform across the US
  • $0 delivery fees on all EBT SNAP orders for customers using a valid EBT card associated with their Uber Eats account in connection with their purchase for two months
  • Embedding SNAP/EBT eligibility and application information in the Uber Eats app to help increase access and awareness of the SNAP program
  • Enabling health providers and community based organizations to order grocery items on behalf of their patients and members to deliver ‘food as medicine’ using an integrated Uber Health and Uber Eats experience
    • Using Uber Health, providers will be able to select fresh food options and will be able to pay for these items using patients’ existing benefits, including SNAP and health insurance plans.
  • Working with our largest US grocery partner, Albertsons Companies, to utilize Uber’s logistics network to transport excess food waste from stores to nonprofits and food banks, beginning in the Washington, DC metro area 

“At Albertsons Cos., we are committed to fighting food insecurity in the communities we serve,” said Suzanne Long, Chief Sustainability and Transformation Officer at Albertsons Cos. “We are thrilled to partner with Uber to create a reliable donation pick up program for our partner food recovery organizations, ensuring that the food donated from our stores gets to those in need.”

We look forward to sharing more about these initiatives over the coming months and creating greater access for underserved communities, vulnerable populations, people in food deserts, and those who need it most. 

More information about Uber Health and grocery and OTC delivery can be found here.