‘A ton of confusion': Farmers market SNAP programs push forward amid uncertainty

Yahoo

a day ago

Fall apples at a farmers market are pictured (USDA photo)
Ongoing discussions in the U.S. Senate about spending on food assistance programs as part of a major tax bill could spill into Montana.
Food assistance programs vary and there's a lot of them. In Montana, as well as other states, some center on paying back food producers who sell their food at farmers markets to those who qualify for SNAP.
In the Treasure State, it's called the 'Double SNAP Dollar program' and allows those qualifying for food assistance to stretch their benefits further by offering double credit at some locations. Three major programs in this arena are overseen by Farm Connect Montana.
The largest Double SNAP program is used by about 2,000 people who utilize around $200,000 in benefits annually. Shoppers get up to $30 per trip to the farmers market to use as a double benefit. So if a person spends $40 on food at a location where the benefit is accepted, it only counts as $20 to their food assistance.
That program is available at 51 different locations statewide and the benefit not only includes farmers markets, but some farm stands and Community Supported Agriculture programs around Montana.
The program is federally funded through the Farm Bill, and according to a peer-reviewed article published last month in the Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development, there's evidence it works in this state.
The Farm Bill has historically been on a five-year cycle and is how the federal government dictates much of the nation's agriculture policy. Lately, it has been renewed on one-year cycles, and parts of the bill are now being discussed in the oft-mentioned 'big beautiful' budget bill being pushed by President Donald Trump.
Splitting up the Farm Bill over a multitude of legislative actions even has some food industry leaders concerned and caused confusion about the future of many American agricultural programs.
These widespread changes, including work from outgoing Trump advisor Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency, has caused some hiccups. This included a period where Double SNAP Dollars were frozen by DOGE cuts between February until April, after which the funding was restored in the short term.
'That created a ton of confusion, because we as the state lead, the operators, we also weren't sure if we would be able to bring that back and have the program this year in the form that it's in,' said Ian Finch, who helps lead to the program at Farm Connect Montana, who added that right now, 'Everything is good.'
Finch said they're pushing forward and have alternative plans should federal funding be reduced. Grants and support by local governments can be gap fillers, he said. And they'll have to be — the delay caused by the freeze means a break in federal support for the Farmers Market programs.
Finch said the organization is telling partners around the state to look at fundraising over the summer to fill the short-term gap in their communities.
The federal money will end in August, Finch said, at which point he hopes Congress and the president will continue it, and make it so that organizations in Montana can reapply.
'The current administration has taken down the opportunity to reapply for funding this year, and we don't know when or if it's coming back, but our national partners are indicating to us that we do expect that application to become available again,' Finch said. 'In which case we will apply and we could have four to five more years of funding.'
Finch works on all three programs — the main Double SNAP program, one geared toward elderly Montanans and another looking to connect people with heart disease and diabetes to fresh food.
The other two programs are smaller than the flagship Double SNAP, Finch said, and more targeted. The Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program is for people 60 years and older, or 55, if they're an enrolled tribal member.
That's a $48 benefit for the summer. It's utilized by around 1,800 people each year and helps support about 200 different farms, Finch said.
The final program, called the Montana Produce Prescription Collaborative, is being done in concert with hospitals and clinics around the state, mostly in rural areas. It's geared towards helping underserved populations. Doctors actually prescribe fresh food, Finch said. That program is about three years old.
'There have been kind of grassroots prescription produce initiatives across the state for probably the last 10 years, and then what we did is we really saw an opportunity to identify all of those grassroots programs, bring them together into a collaborative,' Finch said. 'Then we ended up funding all of them for their next cycle of funding.'
The state's Double SNAP program was the subject of peer-reviewed research, published through the University of Montana. Its findings suggest increased purchasing power contributes to increased interest in a healthier diet, improves food security and helps build community.
'This study adds to the growing body of evidence that nutrition incentive programs provide low-income individuals and families with an opportunity to enhance their diet quality, reducing risk for chronic disease and contributing to long-term well-being,' the study states.
The worry from some in the state, including Montana Farmers Union president Walt Schweitzer, is eventual cuts to SNAP programs will hurt people dependent on food assistance. Farmers could be hurt too, as food assistance is a market some producers have entered.
Schweitzer is concerned the program could be axed, calling it a direct connection between producers and consumers.
'It's really unfortunate,' Schweitzer said. 'And as far as the continuing resolution that was just passed out of the house, where they cut nearly $300 billion from these food nutrition programs, that's going to have a huge impact for the consumers that need this, and it's also going to have a huge impact for producers and losing a big market.'
Farmers Market programs can also spur interest in where someone's food comes from and build relationships with local producers, Finch said. The study asked for thoughts from participants, who shared something similar.
'I always spend a little time chatting with my favorite vendors—the Russians, the Syrian, and the local farmers and families who now bring some of their meat directly to market,' said one person anonymously quoted in the study. 'I like to hear where they are from, and how they got started. Stories like my grandparents who travelled and homesteaded in Central Montana. They are pioneers and innovators.'
Other respondents mentioned how they're asking farmers about ingredients to make a dish better, as well introductions to wholly new foods.
'Spending Double SNAP starts conversation,' another respondent quoted in the study said.
Trump's tax bill passed the House and some estimates put the long-term decrease in SNAP at $300 billion.
According to the Congressional Budget Office, those cuts could remove more than 3 million Americans from the program in an average month, as work requirements would expand to those between ages of 55 to 64 as well as those with children aged 7 and up.
According to Feeding America's 'Mind the Meal Gap,' a data set and map tracking hunger, more than 139,000 people in Montana were food insecure in 2023, which is 12.3% of the state's population. Glacier County had the highest rate at 21%, followed by Roosevelt County at 19% and Liberty County at 17.8%.
More information about Double SNAP can be found at www.doubledollarsmt.com and more information about Farm Connect Montana and its programs is at www.farmconnectmontana.org/food-access.