Grocers warn SNAP cuts would shutter rural stores and ripple through Alabama economy

Jimmy Wright, speaking for grocery interests, told the committee that SNAP dollars are central to many Alabama stores’ survival and to the state food supply chain.

“Many of our stores run between 20 to 40% of their retail sales through the SNAP program,” Wright said, adding that some outlets in low‑income census tracts depend on SNAP for 60% of sales. He warned that even a small percentage loss of SNAP volume would sharply compress already very thin grocery margins.

Wright described the local consequences: fewer stores in rural towns, reduced access to fresh food, lost tax revenue and fewer jobs in distribution and farming. He gave a personal example: his own store does roughly 40% of its sales through SNAP and would have difficulty surviving a substantial reduction in that demand.

Industry speakers outlined mitigation steps they are taking and proposing: investing in chip‑enabled PIN pads and POS monitoring to limit skimming, encouraging retailer reporting of suspicious transactions, certifying local smaller retailers rather than distant certifiers, and expanding nutrition incentive programs such as Double Up Food Bucks that pair SNAP purchases with discounts on fresh produce. They also proposed a revolving loan fund to help reopen or retrofit small stores in food‑desert areas.

Retail representatives said some fraud modes are organized and require technical safeguards at the POS level; they cautioned any retailer ID check policy would need clear guidelines and register‑level procedures to avoid stigmatizing customers.

Committee leaders asked industry for concise bullet points to include in the report to congressional delegations.