The nonprofit Michigan Fitness Foundation (MFF) is working to connect families in Michigan facing food insecurity with local farms, strengthen local food systems and build community. Through their Michigan Farm to Family: CSA (MF2FCSA) program, participants enrolled in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) can access CSAs at a reduced price.
CSAs help consumers to support local farms by buying a share of that year’s harvest before the farmer has planted. During the growing season, the consumer then receives a box of the farm’s produce weekly.
The advance payment gives farmers the money they need to invest in seeds, planting, inputs, tools, etc. But according to Jocelyn Hayward, the Grants Program Manager from Lansing-based MFF, the up-front price can be out of reach for many families who rely on SNAP benefits.
“The rules and regulations around SNAP are that you can’t pay for food in advance, and obviously a lot of families aren’t going to have US$400, US$500, or whatever it is, to pay in one lump sum anyway,” Hayward tells Food Tank.
MF2FCSA removes those barriers by paying farmers the upfront subscription cost at the beginning of the growing season. The program then pays 75 percent of the weekly purchase price of each box. Participants can use their SNAP benefits to pay the remaining 25 percent on the pick-up day.
According to Hayward, access to fresh fruits and vegetables is not the only benefit to program participants. “SNAP shoppers really appreciate the opportunity to connect directly with their local farms,” she says. “I think it really does mean a lot to them as well to be able to support their communities and build these stronger relationships.”
And farmers benefit from the program. “For farmers it definitely has opened up a customer base and allows them to reach people that they might not otherwise have been able to reach,” Hayward tells Food Tank.
Participation in the program does create extra steps for food producers. They must submit invoices to MFF every month for reimbursement and have flexibility with inconsistent shoppers. But Hayward believes that it’s worth the effort for many farmers. “I really do think that [passion] is what drives farmers to participate in this program… and luckily, we can come through for the farmers from our end, the financial side of things that really makes it worth their while,” says Hayward.
MF2FCSA is supported by the U.S Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture, the State of Michigan, and the Michigan Fitness Foundation. MFF piloted the MF2FCSA program in 2019 with funding from the USDA’s Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program (GusNIP).
The program started with just one farm, but MF2FCSA now works with 27 different CSAs. Since its inception five years ago, it has been used by nearly 1,800 eaters on SNAP, who have purchased more than 21,000 weekly shares in total.
Nutrition education is a big component of the program. MFF is one of Michigan’s implementing agencies of SNAP-Ed, the statewide program that works to help SNAP participants make healthy food choices on a limited budget. Michigan Farm to Family: CSA Food Navigator program also works with CSA farmers across Michigan to teach consumers about the produce they buy.
“We’ve also worked really hard to provide education around what the participants are getting in their boxes, so they feel like they’re able to really maximize what it is they’re getting and not be intimidated,” Hayward says.
Hayward credits Michigan Senator Debbie Stabenow, former Chair of the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry for helping to create a political environment that is supportive of local agriculture, and allows programs like MF2FCSA to grow. Other Michigan programs extend this critical food assistance outside of the CSA growing season. Double Up Food Bucks, piloted in Detroit, gives SNAP shoppers a 50 percent discount on produce they buy at local stores and markets year-round. “It’s not as high as what we’re able to do, which of course is 75 percent, but it’s a lot,” Hayward says.
In the future, Hayward hopes to see MFF F2FCSA develop flexible payment models that SNAP shoppers can use, including online payments in advance. She also hopes to see the program expand its reach in Michigan. “There’s a lot of urban farming happening in Detroit, and we’d love to tap into that even more,” she tells Food Tank.
For now, Hayward calls the program a success. “This program really works. We hear from farmers and consumers alike that they really value the program…[It] just sets up a real win-win for everybody involved.”
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Photo courtesy of Michigan Fitness Foundation
