Double SNAP Dollars: Increasing Equitable Access to Local Produce

Double SNAP Dollars ^[1] is a USDA-funded program that increases access to fresh, local produce by giving participants an extra $1 in SNAP benefits for every $1 they spend on produce at farmers markets and participating grocery stores. In Montana, NCAT has partnered with the Community Food & Agriculture Coalition ^[2] on a project designed to diversify the communities this program serves and reach Native Americans and rural low-income people in the state. Since the project launched, it has grown to include 44 participating sites across 32 communities, with seven locations that serve five Native American reservation communities. Over 12,000 Montanans have accessed Double SNAP Dollars, $1.2 million has been spent with local farmers, and $1.8 million created in economic impact supporting direct market farmers and beginning farmers and ranchers.

Local Food Systems Specialist Maura Henn, who coordinates the Double SNAP Dollars program at farmers markets in Southwest and Central Montana, will be presenting a poster about the program at next week’s National Rural Grocery Summit ^[3] in Montgomery, AL. If you can’t make it to the conference, check out Maura’s poster here ^[4].