Do Health Food Stores Accept Food Stamps

Bananas are among the foods people receiving food assistance can buy.

Although many people still call them "food stamps," on a federal level the program that helps more than 35 million people was renamed the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. In addition, gone are the paper coupons that food assistance recipients once used to pay for their eligible food purchases. Now all states issue recipients a plastic card similar to a bank debit card to access their SNAP benefit amount, which many health food stores accept.

Plastic Not Paper

The plastic card used for food benefits now provides more anonymity than the paper coupons formerly issued for food stamps. Each month that a person is eligible for supplemental food assistance, the USDA makes an electronic benefit transfer to their account. The recipient uses his EBT card to purchase food at approved stores. The EBT card is used with a pin number like a bank debit card at the cash register to make the purchase.

Identifying Approved Natural Food Stores

Many stores that sell food accept food stamps, including many natural food stores, most grocery stores, convenience stores, and even food co-ops and some farmers markets. Look for a sign at the store that says it accepts EBT or SNAP Benefits. However, some states, including Oregon and Alaska, for example, call their food stamp EBT card a Quest card, while Ohio calls it the Ohio Direction Card. Alternatively, locate an approved natural food store online.

Locating Approved Stores By Internet

To use the Internet to locate a natural food store that accepts EBT cards for food purchases, go to the USDA's SNAP Retailer Locator website and click on "Select Location." Then plug in your zip code. For example, if you plug in the zip code 20007 for Washington, D.C., the locator will give you the 25 nearest approved stores, which include several natural food stores. In addition, you can call a natural food store and ask if it accepts EBT cards.

How Natural Food Stores Qualify

Natural food stores that want to participate in the SNAP benefit program can contact the USDA Food and Nutrition Service for information on the approval process required to become certified. Eligibility requirements mean a retail store must sell food for home preparation and consumption. In addition, the store must sell foods from at least three of the four staple food groups and perishable foods in at least two of the categories on a continuous basis, or it must derive more than 50 percent of the total dollar amount of all its retail sales from the sale of such foods, according to the USDA. The four staple food groups are meat, poultry or fish; bread or cereal; vegetables or fruits; and dairy products.

Tags: food assistance, food stamps, food store, natural food store, accepts cards, approved stores