Delaware plans to be the first state to pilot a new app that is designed to help families and individuals stretch their Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits dollars and better feed their families.
The pilot is part of the Smart Food Program, which will use an AI-driven app to match surplus food to SNAP demands.
The program is a public-private partnership born out of the White House Challenge to End Hunger and Build Healthy Communities. Delaware Lt. Governor Bethany Hall-Long, state agriculture and health and social services agencies, Federal officials, and r4 Technologies – a new AI company created by the founders of Priceline – are all working together on the program.
To fund the app pilot, Delaware will use $1.5 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding.
The long-range goal is to see the program scale nationwide; Delaware officials noted that Hawaii also is pursuing its own iteration of the app pilot.
“Every person deserves access to healthy, nutritious food. It’s not only beneficial for families, ensuring food equity is beneficial to the economy and our environment,” said Lt. Governor Hall-Long.
“More than 30 percent of food at retail and producer levels is thrown away,” she said. “Through the Smart Food Program, we can significantly lower food waste while connecting individuals in need with healthy food at the grocery store to ensure this food goes to someone’s pantry and not the landfill. It’s my hope we can expand this access further from farmer’s markets and beyond.”
“Delaware will be the first to launch this innovative program, but we look forward to seeing this initiative go transcontinental,” she said. “I want to thank r4 Technologies for turning big ideas into solutions that will directly impact our families, economy, and environment.”
Delaware leaders explained that a key component of the program is the SNAP Smart Shopper app. SNAP recipients can download the app to have access to digital coupons for specific SNAP-approved foods. The goal is to provide information to help SNAP benefit dollars go further through shopping recommendations and educational resources.
“The r4 team is incredibly excited to see our vision of using AI technology to reduce food insecurity and food waste be introduced today as a live program starting in Delaware,” said Paul Breitenbach, founder and CEO of r4 Technologies. “This is an important opportunity for government to apply proven commercial technology to solve two huge problems where everyone wins. We look forward to working with the amazing team in Delaware together with retailers, producers, and state and federal leaders across the country to scale this game changing capability.”
For the app, retailers and producers will make SNAP-approved items available at discounts in the specific stores where surplus inventories and unfilled SNAP demand are predicted.
Delaware officials also explained that another important element is the integration of educational content to support healthy choices from meal planning to buying food. The app, which will be ready for download by the end of this year, uses AI to tailor shopping habits and will be game-changing to address food waste at the retail and producer levels.
“When we can help our most vulnerable buy locally grown products, they get the most nutritious, freshest food Delaware has to offer, and we help keep small farms productive, boosting and growing the local economy. That’s why this program is such a win-win and a great example of how thinking outside the box and public-private partnerships can benefit Delaware’s citizens and beyond,” said Delaware Secretary of Agriculture Michael T. Scuse.
