Recipient Organization
BACKYARD HARVEST, INC.
510 W PALOUSE RIVER DR
MOSCOW,ID 83843
Performing Department
Shop the Market
Non Technical Summary
Backyard Harvest believes that everyone deserves access to fresh, healthy, local produce, and our programs seek to make this vision a reality. Shop the Market is a successful existing program that processes SNAP at five area farmers markets, allowing low-income residents to purchase fresh local food from local farmers. By facilitating the relationship between residents in need and local farmers, Shop the Market has a triple benefit: it alleviates hunger and improves the nutrition of our most vulnerable residents, it brings federal dollars to our local farmers, and it builds a supportive, sustainable community. Backyard Harvest is confident that, by incentivizing and facilitating farmers market SNAP transactions and directly supporting local growers, we can improve the availability, access, and affordability of local fruits and vegetables to SNAP beneficiaries. The FINI grant funds will allow us to expand our program by increasing our SNAP incentives and increasing awareness of the program throughout the region we serve in Eastern Washington and Northern Idaho.
Animal Health Component
(N/A)
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
(N/A)
Developmental
(N/A)
Goals / Objectives
The mission of Backyard Harvest's Shop the Market (STM) program is directly in line with the primary goal of the FINI grant program: to increase the consumption of locally grown fruits and vegetables by SNAP program participants and their families. Our efforts to ensure that our most vulnerable citizens can enjoy delicious, fresh vegetables and fruits grown right here by their own farmers which improves their health and well-being, benefits our environment, benefits the farmers, builds community, and makes the most of gardens, orchards, farmland, and know-how that already exist in our community.Backyard Harvest's Shop the Market (STM) program has been in operation since 2008, when we started processing SNAP transactions at the Moscow Farmers Market. Since that first year, we have expanded our programs to five farmers markets across four counties. The number of SNAP transactions has increased by an average of 47% per year, while the dollar amount of transactions has increased annually by an average of 54%. Since we started offering bonuses, we have given out more than $10,000 in additional bonuses, greatly increasing our program participants' produce-purchasing capability and the amount of money that is paid to local farmers. In 2014 alone, our Shop the Market Program:Increased the total amount of bonuses awarded at all markets by 121% (up to $6,503 from $2,949 last season).Increased the total number of SNAP transactions at all markets by 27% (up to 705 from 553 in 2013).Due to the large increase in bonuses, overall amount of transactions held steady.Added a fifth market to our Shop the Market program: the Lewiston Farmers MarketOver $14,000 was spent through Shop the Market, benefiting local SNAP participants and farmers market vendorsOur goals for the 2015 Shop the Market season are centered on increasing the capacity, efficacy, visibility, sustainability, and efficiency of our programs. Based on the continued growth and success of our programs, Backyard Harvest is confident that we will achieve these goals.GoalsIncrease the consumption of locally grown, fresh fruits and vegetables by SNAP beneficiaries and their families (through purchase bonuses/incentives).Improve the visibility of STM programs to increase participation (through outreach and marketing).Involve more low-income citizens in the planning and outreach process (through the formation of local low-income citizen representative groups).Improve the sustainability of the program (through continued refinement of the message to increase amount of stakeholder contributions to program).Backyard Harvest works closely with market managers, staff, and vendors, to ensure that Shop the Market complies with the rules and regulations of the SNAP program. To ensure the market's continued cooperation with and enforcement of SNAP policies, vendors are briefed at pre-season market meetings and then reminded by Backyard Harvest and market staff throughout the season. STM staff can process refunds for those SNAP beneficiaries who did not use all of their tokens. In addition, STM tokens can be used through out the market season and into the next year.For the 2015 season, if the FINI grant proposal is accepted, Backyard Harvest will match SNAP transactions with bonuses of up to $10 per client, per market, for the purchase of fresh produce. While any SNAP-eligible foods at the farmers market can be purchased through our SNAP transaction token system, bonuses will be exclusively for fresh fruit and vegetables. We will evaluate how this bonus system increases produce purchased and consumed.
Project Methods
Shop the Market allows SNAP beneficiaries to purchase fresh, locally grown food at Moscow farmers markets with their federal food benefits, using a system of wooden tokens. Participating Shop the Market clients also receive an additional $10 bonus once per market to spend on local produce. By facilitating the relationship between residents in need and local farmers with produce to share, Shop the Market not only supports the local economy, but also alleviates hunger and improves the nutritional intake of some of our most vulnerable residents.For the 2015 season, if the FINI grant proposal is accepted, Backyard Harvest will match SNAP transactions with bonuses of up to $10 per client, per market, for the purchase of fresh produce. While any SNAP-eligible foods at the farmers market can be purchased through our SNAP transaction token system, bonuses will be exclusively for fresh fruit and vegetables. We will evaluate how this bonus system increases produce purchased and consumed.Advertising our Shop the Market program to SNAP participants throughout our rural communities is one of the biggest challenges that Backyard Harvest faces. We hope to dramatically increase the visibility of our programs by regularly attending area food bank distribution days to promote the program. We will bring along nutrition students from our local universities, Washington State University and University of Idaho. We aim for all regular food bank clients in the cities served directly to know the Shop the Market program. We will also develop low-income advisory boards in both the Lewis Clark Valley and on the Palouse to help determine the direction of and help advertise our programs. Previous STM survey evaluations, conducted by the University of Idaho, have shown that word of mouth is the most effective way in informing potential STM participants about farmers market SNAP acceptance and incentives. While Backyard Harvest's benefit and incentive redemption system could certainly be replicated in other communities, we believe that it is our marketing and outreach efforts in the rural communities we serve that could be most useful to replicate in rural areas. Project TimelineMonthTaskTotal Number of ParticipantsNumber of Low-Income ParticipantsJanuaryBegin developing potential members for low-income advisory board1510FebruaryLewiston community advisory board meeting355Design and print advertising and marketing material for all five markets52MarchMeet with managers of all markets to review 2014 and plan for 201552AprilLow-income advisory board meetings: Palouse & LC Valley2520Promote STM at food banks and social service organizations 3010MayMoscow Farmers Market begins (continue staffing weekly through October)210200Pullman Farmers Market begins (continue staffing weekly through October)6560Tuesday Growers Market begins (continue staffing weekly through September)2520Begin monthly evaluation of STM progress and comparison to goals (continue each month through year's end)1510Promote STM at food banks and social service organizations 3010JuneLewiston Farmers Market begins (continue staffing weekly through September)1513Promote STM at food banks and social service organizations. 3010Continue staffing Moscow, Tuesday, Pullman, and Lewiston markets.300290JulyContinue staffing Moscow, Tuesday, Pullman, and Lewiston markets.300290Promote STM at food banks and social service organizations. 3010AugustContinue staffing Moscow, Tuesday, Pullman, and Lewiston markets.300290Promote STM at food banks and social service organizations. 3010SeptemberContinue staffing Moscow, Tuesday, Pullman, and Lewiston markets.300290Promote STM at food banks and social service organizations.3010OctoberContinue staffing Moscow, Tuesday, and Pullman markets.285275Promote STM at food banks and social service organizations.3010NovemberReview 2015 market season's transaction numbers and amounts, bonus totals, participations, etc. and compare to goals.3020First Moscow Winter Market (continue staffing bimonthly through December)108DecemberFinish formal evaluation of STM and distribute to funders and partners2010