Performing Department
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Non Technical Summary
Farmers Market Fundand partners will increase Oregon SNAP participants' purchase and consumption of local fruits and vegetables by expanding the successful Double Up Food Bucks(DUFB). SNAP participants at 101 farmers markets, 26 farm stands, 55 grocery stores, and 70 CSAs in all 36 of Oregon's counties will receive a dollar for dollar incentive at the point of purchase in 2025 and 2026. The expansion targets diverse outlets in high need areas to support families and farmers statewide.This project will: 1) Sustain and grow one of the largest and most successful nutrition incentive programs in the country; 2) Increase purchase and consumption of locally grown produce and culturally relevant foods at a diverse selection of retailers by incorporating education around food waste reduction, food preservation, and nutrition; 3) Provide tailored support to retailers to reduce barriers to DUFB participation, especially in high need areas including rural and tribal communities; 4) Coordinate with multiple stakeholders including state, regional, and grassroots organizations to increase program participation in underrepresented communities, especially racially and ethnically diverse populations. 5) Test innovative outreach strategies including four community led regional advertising campaigns to contribute to broader understanding of how to reach low-income populations; and 6) Explore and pilot efficient incentive redemption models to increase DUFB participation and usability.This program is led by Farmers Market Fund, a nonprofit who has coordinated Oregon SNAP matching programs since 2012. It builds off of the groundwork laid by their previous FINI and GusNIP grants
Animal Health Component
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Research Effort Categories
Basic
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Applied
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Developmental
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Goals / Objectives
Goal 1: Increase the purchase and consumption of Oregon-grown fruits and vegetables by low-income shoppers using SNAP at a variety of outlets across Oregon.Objective 1.1: Distribute $6,840,682 of Oregon-grown and culturally appropriate fresh fruit and vegetable incentives at the point of purchase between 2024-2026.Objective 1.2: Expand the geographic reach of DUFB Oregon by adding 44 new sites by 2026, prioritizing communities with the highest SNAP participation and regions without existing sites.Objective 1.3: Improve utilization of fresh fruit and vegetable purchases by partnering with extension volunteers to offer food waste prevention, food preservation, and SNAP-Ed programming at 5+ farmers markets and 10 CSA educational workshops annually.Goal 2: Reach more SNAP shoppers and increase DUFB participation through innovative outreach that is geographically, linguistically, and culturally familiar and accessible.Objective 2.1: Implement a multi-platform, statewide outreach plan informed by the perspectives of DUFB recipients and integrating multilingual explainer videos and digital outreach tools.Objective 2.2: Strengthen engagement with underserved communities eligible for DUFB by collaborating with DUFB Ambassadors, SNAP CAB, and trusted grassroots organizations in communities disproportionately impacted by food insecurity and SNAP.Goal 3: Expand the number of firms offering DUFB with a focus on high need areas, by offering administrative support to retail sites that face barriers to offering the program.Objective 3.1: Provide one-on-one support and connections to 6 BIPOC owned grocery stores to reduce technology barriers associated with making necessary updates to point-of-sale systems.Objective 3.2: Increase administrative and technological capacity to offer DUFB for an average of 86 current and prospective FM and FS partners annually through the Growth Grant program.Goal 4: Explore and pilot efficient incentive redemption models and innovative technologies to increase DUFB participation and improve user experiences.Objective 4.1: By 2026, conduct a feasibility study examining the relevance of e-commerce platforms that incorporate online SNAP and DUFB incentive programs for CSA programs. *Note: no online SNAP or online DUFB will be piloted or implemented in this project period.Objective 4.2: Building off of our 2023 EBT integration feasibility study, convene key stakeholders twice annually to discuss, plan, and assess the landscape of EBT integration. *Note: EBT integration will not be piloted or implemented during this grant period or with grant funds.Objective 4.3: Pilot a decentralized SNAP and DUFB model, shifting from token use by assisting individual farmer vendors at one FM to accept SNAP and DUFB directly by 2026.Evaluation:FMF is proposing to subcontract the coordination of evaluation activities to Dr. Stephanie Grutzmacher, a community nutrition and Extension professor at University of Arizona (UA) and former professor at Oregon State University (OSU), who has served as the evaluator on DUFB Oregon's GusNIP and GusCRRprojects for the past four years.Building on previous evaluation strategies, the proposed IRB exempt evaluation will include process and outcome assessments that: 1) Collect NTAE individual and firm-level core metrics for each site type, 2) Examine outreach effectiveness and engaging non-participants to tailor future strategies, 3) Evaluate the decentralized tokenless pilot model, 4) Analyze social and community aspects of the FM program, and 5) Conduct in depth analysis of longitudinal data to identify trends in program benefits. Findings will be shared with the NTAE and through presentations, reports, and peer-reviewed publications for local and national stakeholders.Students at OSU who have worked closely with Dr. Grutzmacher and the DUFB evaluation will join her to coordinate survey and interview data collection in synchronous and asynchronous remote approaches. In person surveys will be conducted at FMs and FS by locally based staff, while remote surveys will continue to be used for grocer and CSA participants. FMF and evaluators will cooperate and share all core required process and outcome data with NTAE.
Project Methods
Goal 1:A) Expand the number, geographic reach, and racial diversity of retailers offering DUFB: FMF will onboard 8 new farmers market and 16 new farm stand sites using comprehensive training, including access to a robust Market Manager Resource Hub filled with tools. OFB will conduct outreach to community-based retailers, targeting areas with geographic and demographic gaps, high food insecurity rates, and serving diverse communities. OFB will assist grocers with increasing locally-sourced produce and implementing tracking systems. PNWCSA will enroll new and beginning farmers of color in DUFB, enhancing their ability to attract subscribers using SNAP. Support includes addressing common barriers by offering free delivery to low-income areas and stipends for bilingual staff at CSA pickup sites.B) Offer education on food waste reduction, nutrition, and safe food preservation at select farmers markets and CSAs statewide: Oregon State University's Extension offices will collaborate with 10 farmers markets, where Master Food Preservers and SNAP Ed volunteers will conduct seasonal demonstrations tailored to DUFB shoppers. Emphasizing low-cost preservation methods like freezing and drying, these demonstrations will also highlight resources such as free kitchen equipment, budget-friendly eating strategies, and recipes for minimizing food waste. Additionally, PNWCSA will partner with community organizations to host 20 workshops on accessing CSAs with SNAP/DUFB, incorporating culturally familiar food and preparation ideas.Goal 2:A) Launch a statewide marketing campaign tailored to diverse communities: Reaching 500,000+ SNAP shoppers with a focus on high-need areas, this plan includes Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS) direct mailers, print materials, and partnership outreach. Advertising spans radio, print, transit, and online platforms, with messaging in 16 languages. FMF will also collaborate with four regions on Community-Led Regional Advertising Campaigns, co-designed with local partners providing social, religious, educational and other services to low income residents.B) Engage DUFB Ambassadors, SNAP CAB, and community organizations in culturally relevant outreach targeting high-need populations. Surveys show word of mouth as DUFB's primary referral method in Oregon. Diverse individuals and grassroots organizations will facilitate awareness by acting as trusted DUFB sources in their communities. OFB will recruit DUFB Ambassadors from underserved communities for direct outreach and host annual feedback forums with partners. The DUFB coalition will meet with HFO's SNAP CAB biannually for program decision making input. Partners will train 10+ community partners to refer eligible households to DUFB.Goal 3:A) Partner with Point of Sale (POS) providers to ease DUFB participation for BIPOC-owned grocery stores. OFB has selected POS vendors experienced in working with culturally diverse store owners, offering monthly reporting assistance and multilingual support. Collaborating closely with these providers, OFB will ensure clear communication of reporting requirements and develop tailored POS training for multilingual BIPOC grocers. Overcoming these barriers will enhance accessibility for BIPOC-owned grocers providing culturally responsive services, enabling OFB to introduce DUFB in 6 new BIPOC-owned stores by 2026.B) Expand FMF's Growth Grant program to support an average of 78 FMs and 8 FSs annually. With two-thirds of FMs operating on budgets below $50,000,15 supportive admin funding is vital for DUFB sustainability and growth. The Growth Grant, launched in 2021, supports DUFB by covering DUFB related non-incentive costs like SNAP token purchases, local advertising, and staff time. State investment in 2024 expanded eligibility to include prospective partner firms, building capacity for future DUFB implementation.C) Provide training and support to 15 FMs and 10 FS not offering DUFB. FMF works with 79% of Oregon's FMs (93 out of 117). The remaining 24 face significant financial, administrative, and technological barriers to offering DUFB.15 To expand DUFB to 86% of all Oregon FMs, FMF will provide potential partner FMs in high need areas with tailored support to fund and set up systems, capacity, and technology critical to successfully offering DUFB.Goal 4:A) Compile information from e-commerce platforms incorporating online SNAP and DUFB incentive programs. Despite emerging technology platform solutions for farmers to process SNAP online, information on compatibility with Oregon DUFB is limited. PNWCSA will collect insights from various tech providers, specifically examining the ability to integrate with DUFB. This data will inform a resource guide for farmers considering online SNAP.B) Continue conversations about EBT integration with key stakeholders. A 2023 EBT Integration Study examining feasibility of integrating DUFB onto Oregon EBT cards offered recommendations for building ODHS and partner's capacity to support a pilot in 5-8 years. To begin, OFB will organize biannual meetings with ODHS, retail firms, DUFB partners, participants and subject matter experts to keep stakeholders informed about developments and share learnings from states further along in the integration process.C) Pilot a tokenless, decentralized DUFB model at one FM. Currently, DUFB operates centrally at FMs, with FMs becoming SNAP authorized on behalf of vendors and administering SNAP and DUFB through token systems. A decentralized pilot will encourage farmers to become SNAP authorized and manage DUFB directly at their booth. This model reduces FMs' admin time and can simplify use of DUFB for customers. FMF will collaborate with state and federal partners to host SNAP sign-up days for vendors, train farmers and FM staff on modified transaction and reporting systems, and assist with promotion, implementation, and evaluation.