Tops Friendly Markets promotes 'food as medicine' in new partnership
Tops Friendly Markets is teaming up with a provider of supplemental-benefit and healthcare-fintech solutions.
The regional supermarket retailer, a subsidiary of Northeast Grocery Inc., is now letting members of NationsBenefits health plans use their NationsBenefits Benefits Mastercard prepaid card at all Tops locations to purchase fresh produce, pantry staples, and over-the-counter wellness essentials with each transaction validated in real time by NationsBenefits.
The real-time NationsBenefits Basket Adjucation Service basket-analytics engine captures each eligible transaction at checkout, delivering ZIP-code-level purchase insights that help the company fine-tune benefits and community outreach.
"Feeding our neighborhoods well has always been at the heart of Tops," said Ron Ferri, president of Tops Friendly Markets. "By joining the NationsBenefits retail network, we can now place affordable, nutritious options directly in front of eligible shoppers at the very moment they fill their baskets."
Several other grocery retailers are also partnering with NationsBenefits to help customers purchase healthy food and wellness products using their benefits (NationsBenefits partners with managed care organizations to provide innovative healthcare, data analytics, gap closure, and fintech solutions aimed at driving growth, reducing costs, and pleasing members.)
For example, Walmart is connecting Everyday Health Signals, its new artificial intelligence-based digital platform, to NationsBenefits members. The collaboration includes NationsBenefits’ proprietary Basket Analyzer Service, which instantly lets members know if they can pay for products in their basket with their benefits.
[READ MORE: Walmart combines its AI health platform with NationsBenefits services]
Albertsons is also part of the NationsBenefits network of grocery and over-the-counter (OTC) retailers, enabling members of the health plan managed care provider to purchase groceries via the NationsBenefits Benefits Pro Portal, an an all-in-one solution that allows members to search and shop for eligible groceries and wellness products, manage spending allowances, and track order status in real-time.
Thousands of Albertsons stores across banners including Albertsons, Safeway, Vons, Jewel-Osco, Acme and Shaw’s are now part of the Benefits Pro Portal’s retail partner marketplace.
In addition, Southeastern Grocers (SEG), parent company of Harveys Supermarket and Winn-Dixie, began partnering with NationsBenefits in January 2024, while Instacart initiated a collaboration with the benefits provider in April 2024.
"Tops Friendly Markets has been ensuring access to high quality fresh foods and cutting-edge pharmacy services to generations of customers," said Ellie Wilson, MS, RDN, FAND, manager of lifestyle and wellness for Tops. "We strive to innovate and explore how we can best serve shoppers seeking wellness options, with a spotlight on natural, organic and gluten free items, partnerships with local produce farmers, and now, direct access to insurance benefits that empower healthy purchases."
Headquartered in Schenectady, N.Y., Northeast Grocery is the parent company of Market 32, Price Chopper and Tops Friendly Markets, which collectively operate nearly 300 supermarkets across New York, Massachusetts, Vermont, Connecticut, Pennsylvania and New Hampshire.
