State Funding Round Table

In this roundtable session recorded in February of 2021, network leaders with experience obtaining state-level funding for nutrition incentives share their insights and experiences around the process of executing a campaign.

This panel grew out of the work that the Farmers Market Coalition has done in 2020-21 with panelists Molly Notarianni, Executive Director of the Farmers Market Fund and Elizabeth Borst, Executive Director of Virginia Community Food Connections and co-lead of Virginia Fresh Match. Molly and Elizabeth are the two authors of an upcoming practitioner paper with FMC that focuses on their 2019 campaigns to pass legislation in Oregon and Virginia respectively.

They’re joined by Adrienne Udarbe, Executive Director of Pinnacle Prevention, who has successfully campaigned for funding in Arizona, and by Alex Canepa of Fair Food Network, who provides policy support to SNAP incentive programs across the country as part of Fair Food Network’s technical assistance for the Hub. Alex has also worked on state-level policy in Michigan and Texas. Finally Frank Tamborello, Executive Director of Hunger Action LA, joins the conversation as a facilitator, moderating a conversation that focuses on partnerships across aligned agencies as an essential factor in successful state policy advocacy. Frank is a longtime collaborator with farmers markets and Nutrition Incentives programs in California, where he helped develop the Market Match program. 

Watch the roundtable below: 

This work is supported by the Nutrition Incentive Program Training, Technical Assistance, Evaluation, and Information Center (NTAE). The NTAE is funded by Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program grant no. 2019-70030-30415/project accession no. 1020863 from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture. 

Local Food and Local Solutions: Advocating for No-Cost Wireless SNAP Equipment at Farm Direct Outlets

Is the cost of wireless EBT equipment and service a barrier for farmers markets and farms in your state? State SNAP processing contracts could provide a solution.

Join Kate Fitzgerald as she shares expertise on tailoring no-cost EBT equipment options in state SNAP contracts to the needs of farm direct outlets.

This webinar, provided by Farmers Market Coalition, on behalf of the Nutrition Incentive Hub, provides an overview of:

• The role of SNAP processing companies and how states contract with them
• Wireless EBT-processing equipment and service options in various states
• How to communicate effectively with the appropriate people in your state
• How organizations can provide an effective connection between farmers markets and state agencies

Presentations slides

Questions and Coffee LIVE with Richard McCarthy

Richard McCarthy of Think Like Pirates went  LIVE! On Feb 25th, we started our morning off with Questions and Coffee—a Facebook Live event. We’ll be talked with Richard about his recent paper with FMC: “The Origins of Incentives” and took live questions from viewers.

Missed the fun? Enjoy the recording of the live conversation below. Stay up to date with more events like this on the FMC upcoming events page. Make sure to like our Facebook page to find out about our next Questions and Coffee live event!

Farmers markets as a strategy for improving food environments pp 54-60

When designed effectively, supported by knowledge and an
understanding of the food-environment concept, government
policy and fiscal measures can positively influence what food
is available to consumers and lead to healthier dietary choices.
The food-environment concept, for example, has been crucial
to understanding and tackling food insecurity and food apartheid, as
described in this chapter.

Farmers Market Metrics Resources

Find relevant collection and reporting resources for FMC’s Farmers Market Metrics program

Oregon Farmers Market Association 2020 Census Results

Oregon Farmers Market Association recently released results from its 2020 census of farmers markets in a webinar titled “What Happened at Oregon Farmers Markets in 2020.” This presentation holds interesting stats about sales, attendance, and vendor level trends. It also dives into subjects like how Oregon farmers markets responded to COVID-19, widespread wildfires, and calls for racial justice in their communities during 2020.

Click the image below to watch a recording of the webinar.

Access the full presenter slides here.

EBT Tech Bytes: Device Category Overview

FMC presents Tech Bytes: quick sessions covering topics on technology, especially pertaining to EBT.

Our first session provides a brief scan of the three categories of point-of-sale devices: wired, wireless, and mobile, as well as discusses the emergence of loyalty card systems that may eventually help markets replace token-based models. For a downloadable PDF with content from this presentation, look at the slides or read further on the EBT Device Category Overview.

If you’d like to share your market’s device or insights, please reach out to Katie@farmersmarketcoalition.org.

EBT Point of Sale Device: Categories Overview

EBT Point of Sale Device Category Overview

This document will help you familiarize yourself with the categories of devices available – wired, wireless, and mobile, and help you start your search for the right device based on your cellular connectivity needs. This list is not exhaustive, nor is it a recommendation – these devices are examples of what we see commonly occurring in the Market and Farm Stand community.

Please refer to our Market Discovery Process to dive deeper into factors that may influence your technology choice. If you are seeking free or low cost EBT equipment, there are several states offering Free Wireless EBT Equipment to eligible markets and farmers — refer to our nationwide state-by-state guide for more information on what your state’s program offers, but remember, choosing the technology that works for your market before looking at cost is vital to your market’s EBT program.

If you’d like to share your market’s device or insights, please reach out to Katie@farmersmarketcoalition.org.

Seven Common Mistakes Markets Make When Choosing EBT Technology

Seven Common Mistakes Markets Make when Choosing EBT Technology

Farmers markets around the country have been moving towards accepting additional currencies like SNAP benefits in order to make farm-direct food accessible to all shoppers. However, the nature of farmers markets and federal nutrition benefit programs requires that market operators have special equipment – EBT devices – in order to accept these benefits efficiently.

Many farmers market operators pick an EBT point of sale device without knowing exactly what challenges to prepare for. By now, market managers across the country have learned a lot of lessons the hard way — as a community, sharing this collective wisdom can prevent costly mistakes from affecting your market’s operations and finances on the road to implementing a food access program. This list isn’t comprehensive, nor in any particular order, but it does identify some common issues that we’ve seen market operators struggle with over the years.

EBT Technology: Market Discovery Process

EBT Technology: Your Market’s Discovery Process

Your process in choosing a Third Party Processor (TPP, or sometimes referred to as a “Merchant Service Provider”) and device (whether it’s a tablet or a payment terminal) to process EBT can be tricky and depends on a wide range of factors. At worst, rushing into the wrong agreement may create huge problems down the road. Understanding your model’s specific needs are crucial for this process for choosing the right Third Party Processor and corresponding device. 

This document includes a list of questions intended to jumpstart your thinking on specific EBT technology needs at your market or on your farm — it’s best used in conjunction with real feedback from farmers and market operators who use particular devices, or have faced similar challenges. Reach out to technical assistance providers in your area, email katie@farmersmarketcoalition.org, or share questions through FMC’s listserv for specifics.