People who receive benefits from some food assistance programs can double that amount at participating farmers markets.
The program will be offered through the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, according to a university press release.
Benefits provided by the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Farmers Market Nutrition Program for Seniors, and Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children are eligible.
Kayla Lindsay, manager of the Fayetteville Farmers Market, said through this program they are essentially cutting the cost of food at the farmers market in half.
The Fayetteville Farmers Market accepts SNAP and is promoting the acceptance of WIC and Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program vouchers, Lindsay said.
“Our vendors are not required to participate in any programs, but we encourage and support our vendors to enroll in as many programs as they are eligible for,” Lindsay said.
Lindsay said the “Double Your Dollar” funds can be used to purchase any food item except prepared foods and beverages served from food trucks and kiosks.
“The Double Your Dollars card can be used on locally grown foods such as fruits, vegetables, mushrooms, eggs, meats, cheeses, baked goods, edible plants and seeds, jellies, salsas, pickles and more,” Lindsay said.
She said the Double Your Dollar program is a “lifeline” for low-income families in the area.
“The Fayetteville Farmers Market participates in this program because we believe everyone deserves the opportunity to have access to fresh, locally grown food.”
Bentonville Farmers Market Manager Dylan Taylor said Double Your Dollar and SNAP are available to most food vendors, but WIC and Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program vouchers are only available at approved vendors. Vendors must apply through the individual programs to be approved, he said.
While each program has specific requirements for how the funds can be spent, most programs focus on fruits and vegetables because the goal is to provide access to healthy foods, Taylor said.
Hot foods, alcohol, tobacco products, inedible flowers, arts and crafts and pet food cannot be purchased through the program, according to UAMS.
Program praise
Nick Martin is a vendor at the Bella Vista Farmers Market and said the Double Your Dollars program has increased revenue for his company, 922 Cattle Co.
The Anderson, Missouri-based company sells processed beef including steaks, roasts and ground beef.
Martin said he’s glad he took part in the program, which has given his farm another source of income, that customers at the market have been great and that his fellow sellers have become friends.
Kimberly Simmons, a former SNAP recipient, used Double Your Dollars at the Siloam Springs Farmers Market. “It was amazing,” she said.
She said she feels like she gets more out of using the program to go to farmers markets than she does from shopping at grocery stores with her SNAP benefits.
Simmons said she bought chicken, beef, produce, elderberry plants and fresh bread at the farmers market.
Simmons said that although she no longer qualifies for SNAP benefits, she has recommended the Double Your Dollar program to everyone she knows who receives benefits.
“By matching funds with our customers, we are able to save half the price on locally grown produce and support local farmers and farmers markets. It’s so rewarding to know that Northwest Arkansas’ local food system is improving the health of our community with every bite,” said Hannah Dial, project manager for the UAMS Institute for Community Health Innovation.
How does it work?
Vendors are reimbursed and their use of the program is tracked, and Dial previously told the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette that vendor reimbursements have increased over the past two years since the program began, indicating that more state recipients are spending their money on fresh produce.
The program distributed a total of $53,670 worth of vouchers at participating markets in 2023, serving 663 SNAP clients and 576 people who use Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program benefits, according to a UAMS news release.
SNAP, Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program and WIC recipients can participate in Double Your Dollars by visiting an information booth at any of the participating farmers markets and receiving a voucher to be applied at the time of purchase, the release stated.
To participate in the Fayetteville Market program, customers bring their SNAP card or voucher to the manager’s booth, where market staff will match the customer’s funds and explain what they can purchase at the market, Lindsay said.
The “Double Your Dollar” program’s currency is cards in denominations of $1, $2 and $5, and funds are debited from customers’ EBT cards and distributed as wooden tokens, he said. For each program in which it participates, merchants are required to post signs indicating they accept the currency, he said.
According to UAMS, the “Double Your Dollars” program is supported by funding from the Walmart Foundation and the Alice L. Walton Foundation.
Shoppers search for fresh produce at the Fayetteville Farmers Market on Saturday, July 6, 2024. Recipients of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program and Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children can receive $1 for every dollar they spend on locally grown produce at select Northwest Arkansas farmers markets. Visit nwaonline.com/photo for today’s photo gallery. (NWA Democrat-Gazette/JT Wampler)In other news
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