Instacart and Partnership for a Healthier America (PHA) have shared a major milestone – together, they have connected families across the country to 10 million servings of produce.
Additionally through Good Food at Home, PHA’s nutrition security program, the program has delivered fruits and vegetables to the doors of more than 17,000 people in 12 cities.
Prior to the partnership, PHA was only able to provide families pre-packaged produce boxes for pick up. With Instacart Health Fresh Funds, PHA offers a more accessible and convenient delivery model, with added choice, to families.
Fresh Funds are grocery stipends that participating families can use to purchase fruits and vegetables from any retailer available on Instacart. Instacart and PHA first tested the Fresh Funds model in 2023 in Indianapolis. For three months, 600 participating families received $50 of Fresh Funds and an Instacart+ membership to purchase the produce they wanted and get it delivered to their door.
The results of the program were overwhelmingly positive:
- Eighty percent of respondents said they preferred receiving produce credits over produce boxes;
- Seventy-eight percent said produce credits allowed them to purchase more fruits and vegetables than they could usually afford; and
- Seventy-eight percent said produce credits helped their family build a healthy habit.
Building on the success in Indianapolis, Instacart and PHA brought the Fresh Fund model to Washington, D.C.; Englewood, New Jersey; Denver, Colorado; and Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 2023; and Chicago, Illinois; New Orleans, Louisiana; and Wichita, Kansas, in 2024. They also increased the monthly stipend from $50/month to $60/month to give families greater access.
Over the years, Instacart and PHA have continued to improve upon the model to better serve the needs of participants. In 2024, frozen and canned fruits and vegetables were added to the list of eligible items that families could purchase with their Fresh Funds.
This summer, Instacart and PHA launched an eight-month version of the program in Washington, D.C., Detroit, Michigan; and Sacramento, California, to better understand how sustained access to produce can shape long-term habits.
“Sharing food is one of the most powerful ways we care for one another,” said Dani Dudeck, chief corporate affairs officer at Instacart.
“Through our technology and partnership with PHA, we’ve helped families bring 10 million more servings of produce home and build lasting healthy habits. When we make nutritious food easier to access, we’re helping strengthen families and the communities they’re a part of, creating a ripple effect that reaches far beyond the dinner table.”
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