Nearly a hundred households in Winton Hills are getting free grocery delivery plus $100 a month to help with costs. It’s part of a year-long pilot program funded by the city of Cincinnati and in partnership with Kroger, which aims to reach 200 households as enrollment ramps up.
The program launched in December. Kroger waived the $99 annual fee for Boost delivery service, and the city is loading the $100 credit onto each household’s Kroger account monthly.
The pilot is aimed at addressing food insecurity, but Cincinnati Chief Opportunity Officer Tiffany Brown says there are few restrictions on how the money can be spent.
“They cannot use it on alcohol, tobacco, lottery, gift cards, gas or prescription drugs,” Brown said. “They can use it on household items, aside from SNAP eligible items or food produce items. So they can use it on cleaning supplies or feminine hygiene products or diapers, wipes, those types of things, as well as if they do need it for food.”
The program is one of the last pieces of the effort to reduce the city’s racial wealth gap and improve financial empowerment through the Financial Freedom Blueprint. That plan also includes medical debt relief and child education savings accounts.
Originally, the city planned to spend $250,000 in “seed money” for a guaranteed basic income study.
“We needed additional funding to launch the guaranteed basic income effort,” Brown said. “A quick pivot from that would be, how do we support residents in need through a grocery delivery pilot that would still help to support their basic income and to also fill one of their basic needs?”
The city chose Winton Hills for the pilot because it has the highest number of SNAP-eligible households per-capita in Cincinnati, is considered a food desert, and 40% of households do not have access to a vehicle, among other factors.
Brown says households can use the credit in-store, but they’re encouraging participants to take advantage of the free delivery.
There are no eligibility criteria in order to keep a low barrier of entry to the program. But Brown says it’s clear they are reaching the people who need it most.
“Seventy-five percent of the folks enrolled early on that received that December credit receive under $25,000 a year as their household income,” she said.
The city is collecting data on what products the credit is used to purchase, as well as conducting quarterly surveys for more qualitative data, like whether participants are missing meals and reports on their health and mood.
“I'm just really excited about how we can deploy different food supports on a larger scale throughout the city, using this as a proof-of-concept,” Brown said. “I'm thinking about: Where do we go with this next? Because after a year, the funding will run out. And in the meantime, looking for other ways to continue to support Winton Hills, but also other communities that need this type of basic need support.”
The Winton Hills Community Council is handling outreach and enrollment for the pilot program. You can contact them via email at whcc2@gmail.com.
Read more:
