Lisa French, co-founder and CEO of the Field & Fork Network food and farming non-profit, likes to call the Double Up Food Bucks NY program a “win-win-win.”
The program assists families who qualify for the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program by doubling their ability to purchase fresh fruit and vegetables at local farm markets by matching every dollar they spend, up to $20 per day.
But the program also gives low-income families and people more access to healthy nutrition, which is proven to improve community health. And it boosts sales of farmers’ hard-grown produce, benefiting the agriculture industry and local economies, French said.
Local Double Up shopper Melanie Emiliani said the program allows her to buy more fresh produce than she might otherwise choose.
“My SNAP is limited, but with Double Up I can treat myself to something good,” she said. “It gives me a little extra, and I feel good because it goes back to a very good cause, the farmers.”
Emergency food providers throughout the state are experiencing a surge of people needing assistance since the minimum benefit for the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program dropped from $95 a month to $23 as of March 2023.
Due to higher demand since Covid-19-era SNAP…
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