Expanding Food Access in Kent County: United Way Launches Instacart Partnership and Strengthens Food Delivery Services
Across West Michigan, families work incredibly hard to keep food on the table. But for many, transportation barriers, mobility limitations, or simply living far from a full grocery store make that work harder than it should be. Even with SNAP benefits, reliable access to healthy food can still feel out of reach.
That’s why Heart of West Michigan United Way is leading a countywide effort to change the system itself — not just the symptoms. As the Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) Hub for Kent County, we are bringing together public agencies, nonprofits, and private-sector partners to build a modernized approach to food access rooted in dignity, choice, and convenience.
We’re proud to launch the next step in this work: a new partnership with Instacart that will make grocery delivery more accessible for households enrolled in SNAP.
A New, Barrier-Free Way to Access Groceries
Through Instacart’s Fresh Funds program, eligible Kent County residents will receive waived delivery and service fees on up to four grocery orders per month, referred through 2-1-1, the Kent County Health Department, and local nonprofit partners.
This isn’t just about online shopping. It’s about:
A parent working two jobs who can’t spend hours commuting to a store.
A senior who struggles to navigate icy sidewalks in the winter.
A family caring for a child or adult with medical needs.
Anyone balancing so much that a grocery trip becomes an impossible task.
Removing delivery barriers gives people more than groceries — it gives them stability, dignity, and breathing room.
Meeting Households Where They Are
Our Instacart partnership is one tool in a much larger food-access system we are building alongside community partners. Through our Food Delivery Service Program, we fund local organizations that prepare and deliver nutritious meals and pantry essentials directly to the homes of people who can’t shop or cook for themselves.
These partners serve:
Homebound adults and seniors
Families in crisis
Rural households with limited transportation
Children enrolled in Head Start
Residents relying on medically supportive diets
SNAP/EBT households unable to reach mobile market sites
Every partner fills a different gap — and together, they ensure that no resident is limited by transportation, mobility, or circumstance.
A Human-Centered Transportation Option
For residents who wish to shop in person, our United Way Social Navigator coordinates transportation through Uber Health, offering up to two rides per month for six months. For many individuals, this small support makes all the difference between getting groceries and going without.
What Donors Make Possible
This effort is more than a collection of services. It’s the architecture of a stronger regional food system — one that puts people first.
Your investment helps ensure:
Access becomes easier, not harder.
Families shouldn’t have to work twice as hard to meet a basic need.
Systems become smarter and more connected.
We’re aligning grocery delivery, meal delivery, transportation, and social navigation into a seamless experience.
Innovation happens here.
Piloting electronic referrals with the Kent County Health Department and testing new delivery tools gives us the blueprint to scale smarter solutions statewide.
Dignity guides every decision.
Food access should never depend on someone’s physical ability, their zip code, or the flexibility of their work schedule.
Donors make it possible for these solutions to move from ideas to action — from pilot programs to long-term, sustainable systems.
A Future Where Access Isn't a Barrier
This work is reshaping the way Kent County — and eventually our broader tri-county region — supports families. When we remove unnecessary obstacles and modernize how people receive food, we free families to focus on health, stability, education, and opportunity.
And that is the kind of change that lasts.
Together, we’re investing in a community where every household has reliable access to nutritious food — delivered in the way that works best for them. This is the future we’re building: one that treats food access as a right, not a challenge to overcome.