Farmers Market Promotion Program

Activities, Impacts, and Inspirations, 2006-2011

In the fall of 2012, the Farmers Market Coalition partnered with Market Umbrella to embark on a research project to understand the activities and impacts of the USDA Farmers Market Promotion Program (FMPP), surveying and conducting selected interviews with FMPP grantees awarded grants between 2006 and 2011. Findings reveal that FMPP has supported a wide variety of project types, yielding a diverse set of impacts in hundreds of communities, serving and even helping build the capacity of statewide organizations. Download the full report, read the Green Paper, browse four case studies, or view a slideshow highlighting main findings.

FMPP Grantee Case Studies

2011 Grantee: George Washington Regional Commission ($88,400)

Spotsylvania, Virginia – Collaboration and creativity cultivate returns: Regional network of farmers markets expands access and increases income for 65 farmers […] Read more

2009 Grantee: Columbia Farmers Market ($57,251)

Columbia, Missouri – Innovative marketing helps farmers grow healthy communities: FMPP grant connects community partners, grows customer bases […] Read more 

2010 Grantee: Urban Tree Connection ($89,654)

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – Nourishing a neighborhood: FMPP grant helps create a community-based food system in West Philadelphia […] Read more

2009 Grantee: Minnesota Food Association ($52,793)

Stillwater, Minnesota – Mentoring maximizes yields: New organic farms sprout through immigrant & refugee training program […] Read more

Acknowledgements

This research project was conducted by the Farmers Market Coalition in partnership with Market Umbrella. Data was collected in cooperation with the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), which provided program data for use in the FMPP Grantee Survey Report.

The authors would like to thank members of the FMPP Evaluation Advisory Group, including Alfonso Morales, Associate Professor, Department of Urban & Regional Planning, University of Wisconsin; Anne Palmer, Program Director, Center for Livable Future, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health University; Richard Pirog, C. S. Mott Group, Michigan State University; Jeffrey O’Hara, Economist, Food & Environment Program, Union of Concerned Scientists; and Kathleen Fitzgerald, food systems consultant. This report was edited by Kathryn Rogers and designed by Matt Hannigan. The authors would like to thank Christine Hursh at the University of Wisconsin who, with Alfonso Morales, conducted qualitative analysis of the survey comments. They also thank the many FMPP awardees who took time out of their busy lives in the fall of 2012 to thoughtfully share information about their grant projects in the survey.