Small local grocery stores feel the sting of SNAP cuts: ‘Every dollar counts.’

On Sunday morning at The Spot, a liquor store and deli in Point Richmond, owner Tina Kaur said business has come to a near standstill as customers’ food stamp accounts have run dry. 

Kaur has owned the shop for 15 years, slinging soda, juices, chips, pre-made Indian food and hot dogs, and said in the past few days she’s noticed more shoplifting.

“They come, put it on the counter, then grab it and drive away,” she said. 

Kaur worries her regulars aren’t getting enough to eat. Many of her customers receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits, which have been delayed since Nov. 1 because of the federal government shutdown. 

According to CalFresh, the name of California’s SNAP program, more than 109,000 individuals in Contra Costa County are enrolled. About a third are below the age of 18. 

Even after being court-ordered to reinstate benefits in full, President Donald Trump has refused, taking his fight to the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday after a flurry of legal activity in the past 10 days. While the issue plays out in court, Contra Costa County is trying to make up for $21 million in lost benefits. 

Small grocery store owners in Richmond are already feeling the squeeze. Of the seven shopowners Richmond Confidential interviewed, five said they have already seen or anticipate a loss of business.

Kaur tries to help out where she can. She said she gave one of her regular customers free hot dogs just to make sure he eats. 

“They just cut it,” she said of his SNAP benefits, “and he has to pay rent.” 

Selling fewer groceries

Jason Preet-Singh, a worker at Del Norte Liquor in El Cerrito, has not been able to accept EBT payments in the past 10 days because his card reader is down, and with the government shutdown, he is not able to reach anyone to resolve his issue. 

“It’s not good,” Preet-Singh said. “Every dollar counts.”

He estimated that at least $50 to 60 in purchases a day come from SNAP users, and some customers have stopped coming since the funding lapsed. 

“I have two customers who come just to spend EBT,” Preet-Singh said. “They’re not coming anymore.”

At Val Mar Market on Barrett Avenue, which has been selling groceries in the neighborhood for the past 20 years, a sign in bold lettering reads, “WE ACCEPT EBT.” They shop’s vast offerings range from canned goods and seasonings to pain relievers and diapers. Many of the customers greet Stachio Alamari, the owner’s son, by name. 

About half of the shop’s clientele use EBT, the electronic benefits transfer card issued to SNAP recipients. 

“We know 100% that it’s going to affect business,” Alamari said. ”Less groceries will be sold.”

CalFresh accounts reload

On Monday, Contra Costa County issued an alert saying SNAP benefits had been loaded onto CalFresh recipients’ EBT cards, and offering emergency debit cards to qualified recipients whose accounts did not reload. 

Individuals qualify for CalFresh if they make $2,610 or less a month in pre-taxed income. A household of five is capped at $6,276 a month. 

This summer, under the new spending bill, the federal government limited SNAP eligibility by imposing work and citizenship requirements for many adults to participate in the program The National Grocers Association projects that this change alone will immediately cost convenience stores nationwide $1 billion dollars. 

Kaur said the slip in sales is putting her own family in a pinch and she worries about how she will provide for her three children, especially as the cost of utilities and other basic necessities are on the rise. 

“Everything,” she said, “is more.”

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