Press Release: 4/2/2025

State health officials launch first-ever online grocery ordering program for Massachusetts WIC participants

 

Participants can now use their benefits to order WIC-approved foods online from Walmart stores across the state

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

4/01/2025

MEDIA CONTACT 

Katheleen Conti, Assistant Director of Media Relations

 Phone

Call Katheleen Conti, Assistant Director of Media Relations at 617-624-5006

 Online

Email Katheleen Conti, Assistant Director of Media Relations at katheleen.m.conti@mass.gov

BOSTON — The Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) today announced that Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Nutrition program participants in Massachusetts can, for the first time, use their benefits for online ordering through Walmart. Participants are now able to shop online for WIC-approved foods for in-store pickup or delivery from 48 Walmart stores across the state, providing a modern, convenient, and accessible option for the more than 125,000 residents served by the program in Massachusetts each year.

This pilot program is part of an initiative by the Food and Nutrition Service at the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) to improve the WIC shopping experience by incorporating internet-based transactions. Under federal guidelines, WIC-approved items have only been possible to purchase in-person from participating stores. However, Massachusetts is among a handful of states that received federal grant funding and waivers to implement the WIC online ordering project. 

“The option to shop for groceries online makes nutritious food more accessible for WIC participants in the state,” said Public Health Commissioner Robbie Goldstein, MD, PhD. “It helps alleviate the challenges faced by many when in-person shopping is the only option – challenges like limited mobility, lack of transportation, language barriers, and time constraints.”

Integrating online ordering into Massachusetts WIC services is part of Massachusetts’ ongoing commitment to equitable access to quality public health services, including by reducing food insecurity and barriers to healthy foods for families. Massachusetts WIC participants can now shop for WIC-approved food through the Walmart app or online by going to Walmart.com/wic.

Funding for the Massachusetts WIC online ordering program comes from the WIC Online Shopping Cooperative Agreement Grant from the USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service and the Center for Nutrition and Health Impact. Grant participation is in collaboration with the Washington State Department of Health’s WIC program, Walmart, and eWIC benefits processors Custom Data Processing Inc. and Fidelity Information Services.

The Massachusetts WIC program has provided personalized nutrition care and benefits to income-eligible pregnant people and families with children under age 5 to purchase nutritious foods critical for growth and development. Administered within DPH’s Bureau of Family Health and Nutrition, Massachusetts WIC currently serves nearly half of all infants and over 125,000 individuals per month across the state. WIC families can redeem their benefits in-person at more than 850 approved retailers across Massachusetts.

More information is available at mass.gov/wic.