Progress 04/01/15 to 03/31/19
Outputs
Target Audience:This FINI grant has targeted four key audiences: households using SNAP, grocery retailers, farmers and statewide/community groups. Households using SNAP:The Food Bucks program has seen consistent growth, and by the final year of the grant, the program reached an estimated 20,000 households receiving SNAP in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and other parts of the state in need of increased access to healthy food, including Chester, Reading and Washington. This represents a 16-fold increase in the number of households receiving Food Bucks since the FINI-funded program started (Philadelphia has been running a Food Bucks incentive program at farmers markets since 2010). A majority of TFT's farmers markets and partner markets, and all participating corner and grocery stores are in low-income areas with high customer utilization of SNAP benefits. Through Food Bucks, shoppers using SNAP benefits increased their purchasing power to buy fresh produce by at least 40%. From 2015 to March 2019, over $237,000 in Food Bucks were redeemed at 131 sites. Prior to FINI, SNAP users in many key regions of the state outside Philadelphia did not have access to incentives for fresh produce. In fact, farmers markets in Pittsburgh only began accepting EBT cards in 2013. Incorporating Food Bucks into Pittsburgh-area farmers markets was an important complement for SNAP shoppers, and in the final year of the grant, over 1,400 unique SNAP households earned Food Bucks at Pittsburgh-area farmers and mobile markets, redeeming a total of $21,800. Prior to this grant, shoppers could use SNAP at 15 farmers markets. By the end of the grant, they had access to Food Bucks incentives at 21 markets and farm stands and 15 mobile market stops. In Philadelphia, incentives for SNAP shoppers began in 2010, but FINI allowed for significant expansion of the program to more sites. In 2018, TFT estimates that over 2,700 unique shoppers earned Food Bucks at Philadelphia-area farmers markets and farm stands, redeeming a total of $28,400. While access to local, affordable produce at farmers markets is an important piece of the work, there is also a need to engage shoppers at traditional retail settings, where most SNAP benefits are spent. The FINI grant enabled TFT to partner with one corner store and five Fresh Grocer supermarkets in Philadelphia, located in underserved areas of the city, to implement Food Bucks incentives for fresh produce. At Olivares Food Market in Philadelphia, 765 unique shoppers redeemed over $10,000 in Food Bucks in 2018. Working with supermarkets provided the opportunity to reach a much higher number of shoppers using SNAP. Using data and sales transaction records from supermarket partners, an estimated 15,650 households earned Food Bucks from April 2018-March 2019, redeeming nearly $40,000 for fresh produce. TFT continually refined the program model to ensure all eligible shoppers were receiving incentives. In early 2019, when an automated distribution model was implemented, there was a dramatic 20-fold+ increase in the number of Food Buck distributions to shoppers using SNAP. Beyond PA's two biggest cities, TFT worked with markets throughout PA to implement Food Bucks. The Main Street Farmers Market, in Washington, introduced incentives for the first time in 2017, and more than quadrupled the number of shoppers receiving Food Bucks in the second year. Reading's Penn Street Market, which operates in a city with one of the highest rates of SNAP participation, has also seen growth through the Food Bucks program; SNAP sales have increased throughout the grant, reaching nearly $2,500 in the 2018 market season. Across all the sites, TFT engaged with households receiving SNAP in a number of ways. Notably, TFT worked with the PA Department of Human Services (DHS) to send a direct mailer to all SNAP households in the 19139 Promise Zone ZIP code of West Philadelphia to promote the Food Bucks program at Fresh Grocer. The mailing reached 11,900 households and resulted in over $1,000 in Food Buck redemptions. Through weekly SNAP-Ed nutrition education at supermarkets, utilizing our Heart Smarts curriculum, which promotes fresh fruits and vegetables and includes recipes and resources, TFT provided over 50 lessons to more than 300 participants. *Note: Since not all sites can provide the number of unique program users, the above represents our best estimates of households reached based on the number of SNAP transactions and data from comparable sites; there may be some Food Bucks users who were double-counted or undercounted. Grocery Retailers: During this grant, TFT has worked with six grocery retail locations, including a regional supermarket chain and small neighborhood bodega. A key partnership was with the Burns Family Fresh Grocer stores, a supermarket chain that operates nine grocery stores in Delaware and Southeastern PA, most serving communities with limited resources. Another retail partner was Olivares Food Market, a corner store/bodega in South Philadelphia that is part of TFT's Healthy Corner Store Initiative. As these were the first permanent retail locations in PA to offer produce incentive programs for households using SNAP, it was crucial to have committed retailers willing to problem solve and adjust the program as needed. TFT has continued to partner on Food Bucks programming under our second FINI grant (2017), and has worked with an additional four supermarkets and six corner stores in that capacity so far. Farmers: There are now over 100 farmers market vendors benefitting from increased SNAP sales thanks to the FINI program in PA. Since 2015, nearly $150,000 worth of Food Bucks have been redeemed with local growers for fresh fruits and vegetables. During the 2018 market season, The Food Trust's farmers market team in Philadelphia worked with 75 unique vendors selling SNAP-eligible products and 50 farmers who grow/sell fruits and vegetables. In Pittsburgh, Just Harvest and the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank have worked with 38 farmers across 21 markets and 15 mobile market sites, to bring fresh produce to shoppers using SNAP benefits. Across the board, farmers have become more aware of and have benefitted from the Food Bucks program. From 2015 through 2018, several urban farmers and partner sites joined the Food Bucks program in Philadelphia. One standout, Greensgrow Farms, saw their SNAP sales substantially increase (over 200%) during the course of the partnership.Other key partner market highlights include SHARE Nice Roots Farm, which added on 25 school farm stand pop-ups. ?Statewide and Community Partners: TFT connected with many groups statewide to promote the FINI program and provide technical assistance. This included larger agencies such as Penn State Extension and the Department of Agriculture, as well as smaller regional groups such as the Berks Agricultural Resource Network. Philadelphia-area key partnerships for supporting and promoting the Food Bucks program include: Together for West Philadelphia Food Justice Working Group; The Greater Philadelphia Coalition Against Hunger; Hispanic Association of Contractors and Enterprises; Philadelphia Housing Authority; Diversified Community Services; American Heart Association; Philadelphia Corporation for Aging; and Lankenau Medical Center.The Food Trust also launched a new volunteer Community Nutrition Ambassador Program and hosted a team of Drexel Medical Students; both groups were tasked with facilitating Heart Smarts nutrition education at The Fresh Grocer locations over a 6-month period. In Western PA, TFT continued to work with leading anti-hunger organizations Just Harvest and the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank to provide Food Bucks to shoppers using SNAP in Allegheny County. Just Harvest received additional funding to offer incentives to children to encourage them to purchase produce, and worked with the Allegheny County Health Department to support increased outreach efforts. Changes/Problems:Supermarket Program Models: A significant challenge has been operationalizing an incentive program given the limitations of point-of-sale (POS) systems in supermarkets. TFT worked with Fresh Grocer for three years before implementing the current, most-successful model. The main difficulty throughout this process has been the inability of the store's POS system to identify the tender type for each transaction. These two systems are separated until the transaction is complete. Initially, TFT relied on cashiers to identify shoppers using SNAP benefits and to enter a PLU code to trigger the incentive distribution, but found the majority of eligible shoppers were not receiving Food Bucks. A combination of employee turnover, inconsistent cashier training from store management, and stigma associated with receiving SNAP benefits all helped to hinder the distribution process. However, because Fresh Grocer has a loyalty program, TFT worked with their IT team to identify loyalty card numbers associated with SNAP transactions, and to use those loyalty card numbers as triggers for earning the incentives. Continued partnership to ensure that this list is kept current and accurate has been a critical component of this model, which has resulted in all eligible shoppers receiving Food Bucks. Store Owner Turnover: One of our main corner store partners in Philadelphia changed owners in 2018. The new owners were enthusiastic about participating as a Food Bucks distribution and redemption site. However, the transition in ownership required the new owners to reapply to become a SNAP-authorized retailer. This transition caused an interruption in Food Bucks programming, which was a setback for participants and the store because of lack of continuity in programming. Store owner transitions also pose challenges and demands on staff time due to extra technical assistance and training needs with new owners, as well as additional outreach that is needed to rebuild momentum with SNAP participants once program services are back up and running. ?Multiple Currencies and Programs: One challenge faced as the program expanded to different cities such as Pittsburgh and Reading was the need to keep incentives consistent between different market sites for easier customer use. At first, each city had unique branded Food Bucks, but this became inefficient as the number of partners increased and the geographies became broader. In addition, it was much more cost-effective to print a more generic buck that could be used in multiple settings. There was also variation in the program amounts or deliveries. TFT allowed its program partners some flexibility in how they operated their incentive programs, particularly for partners who had begun incentive programming before FINI, or who had secured additional funding to sustain the program. For example, the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank secured additional funding from an outside partner to offer a 100% match to shoppers using SNAP benefits at their mobile market sites, and started printing their own incentives rather than using TFT's Food Bucks. Since the incentives looked different, and were in a different denomination, they could no longer be redeemed at farmers markets where Just Harvest was implementing Food Bucks. In 2018, TFT worked with the Food Bank to transition back to our Food Buck design and denomination, while maintaining their 100% match, which has re-enabled shoppers to earn and redeem Food Bucks between all farmers/mobile market locations in the Pittsburgh-area. This effort has also extended to our 2017 FINI grant, where we have standardized Food Bucks distributed at corner stores to match those from farmers/mobile markets and Food Bucks are currently able to be earned and redeemed between all participating corner stores and farmers/mobile markets in the region. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Throughout this grant, TFT provided comprehensive training to all market associates and partner markets in Philadelphia and around the state. Just Harvest provided similar trainings in the Pittsburgh area. In the five Fresh Grocer stores, promotion and technical assistance was provided in the form of weekly check-ins with front-end managers, customer service staffand store managers to troubleshoot problems, resolve issues, manage signage and review general success and challenges of implementation. During this final grant year, project staff also took part in various professional development trainings, including: 2019 Mid-Atlantic Health and Hunger Summit - WDC - conference on health prosperity in large metropolitancities Hudson Institute - "Why They Buy: Fighting Obesity Through Consumer Marketing Research - panel discussion on consumer purchasing of fruits and vegetable related to chronic disease HealthyFoodRetailAccess Summit in November 2018 at the City University of New York School of Public Health How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?The program results from 2015-2019 have been disseminated widely to multiple stakeholders, including nonprofit professionals, anti-hunger advocates, academics, students and retailers. The Food Trust has utilized events and resources such as the annual Convening on Healthy Food Access, FINI Project Directors meeting, Westat-led webinars, healthyfoodaccess.org online portal, FNS-organized meetings among FINI grantees, and other learning collaboratives to share program results and best practices. In addition, during the final grant year (April 1, 2018-March 31, 2019), TFT shared program findings in the following settings: The "Farm Bill Working Group Report: Why The Farm Bill Matters" report, which includes mention of the FINI program, was disseminated widely though social media, at TFT's Food and Farm Policy town halls, and given to legislators. A webinar on the Farm Bill (hosted by www.healthyfoodaccess.org) highlighted the FINI program and is housed online at the Center for Healthy Food Access. FNS-organized webinar during which TFT Project Staff presented key FINI learnings to new grantees. FINI panel at the annual National Grocers Association conference Farm Bill panel at the annual Convening on Healthy Food Access in Washington, DC, featuring other key FINI leaders such as Fair Food Network FINI Leaders pre-meeting before the annual Convening on Healthy Food Access, including several FINI grantees and other stakeholders Continued dissemination of the SNAP incentives report "The Power of Produce", co-authored by The Food Trust, Wholesome Wave, and Fair Food Network, and featuring many FINI grantees 100 for Hunger: An Interactive Meeting on Food Insecurity hosted by Action Tank "Let's SNAP to It" Panel Discussion for Partnership for Better Health PA Central Food Bank: Child Hunger Summit PA Central Food Bank: Annual Partner Meeting College of Physicians Public Health Day Philadelphia FIGHT Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) roundtables in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh Plan for a Healthier Allegheny quarterly meeting Chatham University Food Studies Masters students What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?N/A (final report)
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
TFT has expanded its successful Food Bucks program from Philadelphia into other parts of the state including Pittsburgh and Reading, and from farmers markets into supermarkets and corner stores. In the last four years, shoppers using SNAP benefits increased their purchasing power to buy fresh produce by at least 40% and redeemed over $237,000 in Food Bucks at 131 sites statewide. In 2014, the only incentives for fresh produce were available at Philadelphia-area farmers markets, serving 29 neighborhoods. By 2019, 131 locations statewide offered Food Bucks, providing access to affordable produce for more PA residents. In addition to farmers markets, shoppers using SNAP in Philadelphia can now earn and redeem incentives at five Fresh Grocer locations and one corner store, and have spent over $180,000 (including earning transactions and Food Buck redemptions) on fresh produce in these locations. This grant has built a strong foundation for the growth of the Food Bucks incentive program, which continues under TFT's 2017 grant. Data Collected (across all Objectives) Total and average SNAP and produce sales Dollar amount and number of Food Bucks distributed and redeemed Number of participating retail sites Customer surveys on program participation, changes in dietary behaviors and f/v consumption Vendor surveys on Food Bucks program satisfaction and sales impacts Number of produce items sold or dollar amount of produce sales (during baseline and intervention periods) in corner store Process evaluation to examine effectiveness of cashier-activated vs. automated activation model in Fresh Grocer locations Objective #1. Increase SNAP sales, redemptions and positive impact of Food Bucks and SNAP benefits among SNAP participants at farmers markets and mobile markets. Major Activities Completed:TFT has expanded its network of farmers/mobile markets participating in the Food Bucks program from 29 in 2014, to 125 locations in 2018. Western PA now has a robust network of Food Bucks sites, which provided nearly 1,500 SNAP shoppers with $24,000 in Food Bucks in 2018. In Philadelphia, SNAP sales at farmers markets and Food Bucks distributions and redemptions have continued to increase; Food Buck redemptions are up 77% since 2014, with $28,000 redeemed in 2018. Most farmers markets provide shoppers with a $2 Food Buck, redeemable for fresh produce, for every $5 in SNAP spent. Summary Statistics and Key Outcomes:Philadelphia farmers markets ran 19,000 SNAP transactions between April 2015-March 2019, generating $264,000 in SNAP sales, and over the last four years, Food Bucks distributions and redemptions at markets have nearly doubled. Since 2015, Philadelphia farmers markets have distributed $121,000 in Food Bucks, with $86,000 redeemed (71%). In the Pittsburgh region, local partners distributed $74,800 in Food Bucks, with $66,500 redeemed (89%). Together, markets across PA, including Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chester, Norristown, Reading and Washington County totaled $465,000 in SNAP sales and over $156,000 in Food Bucks redemptions. Importantly, customer surveys in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh demonstrate behavior change: 70-75% of Food Bucks participants reported increasing fruit and vegetable consumption since using Food Bucks. Objective #2: Improve access to affordable fresh produce in Philadelphia's Promise Zone, through an integrated Food Bucks program that provides access at a supermarket. Major Activities Completed:At five Fresh Grocer supermarkets in Philadelphia (two serving the West Philadelphia Promise Zone), TFT successfully implemented a new electronic incentive where shoppers using SNAP earn a $2 Food Bucks coupon (redeemable for fresh produce) for every $5 they spend on fresh produce using their EBT and store loyalty card. In the first quarter of 2019, a more efficient distribution model was implemented in all five stores, resulting in a 3000% increase in Food Bucks distributions to over 7,400 eligible shoppers. In total, $40,000 was redeemed for fresh produce, with 89% of that in 2018-2019. Sales data were collected and analyzed by Wakefern Food Corporation. This effort was enhanced by Food Trust-led nutrition education and taste tests, using Heart Smarts, our SNAP-Ed approved curriculum. Summary Statistics and Key Outcomes 70,955 $2 coupons were distributed in-store, reaching approximately 9,000 shoppers. $141,910 in Food Bucks were distributed and $40,398 were redeemed for fresh produce. Shoppers using SNAP who participated in nutrition lessons and redeemed Food Bucks were 46% more likely to purchase produce at the store that day compared to shoppers who only attended lessons. A matched sample of SNAP households showed that shoppers who received Food Bucks spent almost 50% more on produce during a 2015 promotion period than they did over the same time period in 2014, a 48.9% increase over shoppers who used SNAP but did not receive Food Bucks. $2 Food Buck SNAP mailer reached 11,9000 households in the 19139 zip code, 523 Food Bucks, totaling $1,046 were redeemed. Objective #3: Increase SNAP sales of regional produce for farmers who vend at PA farmers markets offering Food Bucks. Major Activities Completed:TFT worked with over 80 farmers selling fresh produce in PA at 125 market sites. The expansion of Food Bucks to Western PA was instrumental in supporting SNAP sales for farmers, where markets only began accepting EBT cards in 2013. SNAP sales at Western PA markets jumped from $24,000 in 2014 to $47,000 just one year later, after the introduction of Food Bucks. Including Food Bucks redemptions, farmers in 2015 took home an additional $37,000 cumulatively compared to 2014. Summary Statistics and Key Outcomes: See analysis of SNAP sales under Objective #1. Objective #4: Development of a replicable model, with ready-to-disseminate tools and resources, for the Food Bucks program. Major Activities Completed:TFT has successfully developed a replicable model for Food Bucks incentive programming at farmers/mobile markets, corner stores and supermarkets. Farmers/mobile markets: TFT developed a lower-cost Food Buck with a scan-able bar code and created an online database enabling partners to track incentive distribution/redemption and vendor payments. TFT worked closely with partners to enable cross-redemption of Food Bucks between all participating farmers markets, resulting in a network of over 125 sites where Food Bucks can be earned and redeemed easily, and thoroughly tracked. Corner Stores: TFT developed an effective model, which thrived in Philadelphia and has since expanded into more sites under the 2017 FINI grant. Since corner stores often have limited technological capacity and transactions tend to be small, it was crucial to customize the right model for this setting. Supermarkets: After piloting different distribution methods at Fresh Grocer, major success came in the form of automated incentive distribution in early 2019, resulting in massive increases in the number of shoppers using SNAP who earned and redeemed Food Bucks. Summary Statistics and Key outcomes See Objectives #1 and #2 for details on farmers markets and Fresh Grocer. From 2016, when TFT began working in Olivares, through March 2019,the store had approximately 14,500 SNAP transactions, distributed over $41,500 in Food Bucks, and redeemed $29,645 for fresh produce. Comparison of a 6-month period in 2017 vs the same timeframe in 2016 (prior to the incentive) showed a 175% increase in produce units sold. Much of this success was attributable to Olivares' dedicated owner, who assisted with outreach to shoppers. TFT also worked with the store to install an electronic POS system, which allowed for a deeper understanding of FINI impact, and easier tracking of seasonal trends. The development and refinement of the online database to track Food Bucks distributions and redemptions was a significant contribution to our ability to effectively expand the program.
Publications
- Type:
Other
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2018
Citation:
Why The Farm Bill Matters for Greater Philadelphia, The Food Trust and the Greater Philadelphia Regional Farm Bill Working Group
http://thefoodtrust.org/uploads/media_items/why-the-farm-bill-matters-for-greater-philadelphia.original.pdf
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Progress 04/01/17 to 03/31/18
Outputs
Target Audience:SNAP Users: In its third year, The Food Trust's Food Bucks program reached SNAP families in underserved and low-income areas of Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, as well as other parts of the state, including Chester, Norristown, Reading, and Washington County, who were in need of increased access to healthy food. A large majority of The Food Trust's farmers markets, partner markets, and all participating grocery stores are in low-income areas where shoppers are utilizing SNAP benefits. Through use of Food Bucks, SNAP recipients increased their purchasing power to buy fresh, local produce by 40% and spent $65,747 in SNAP at Philly Farmers Markets during the 2017 farmers market season, a 5% increase from the 2016 SNAP sales ($62,832). In Philadelphia supermarkets, the Food Bucks program expanded from three to five supermarkets in underserved areas of the city, serving shoppers in the Philadelphia neighborhoods of Haddington (West Philadelphia), Cecil B. Moore (North Philadelphia), Grays Ferry (Southwest Philadelphia), and Germantown (Northwest Philadelphia), providing greater access to healthy, affordable food. Overall during this reporting period, the Philly Food Bucks program reached approximately 1,271 SNAP shoppers in grocery stores. In addition, the project team planned for additional innovative promotions with our supermarket partners in order to reach more SNAP shoppers; these are expected to roll out in 2018. In Pittsburgh, The Food Trust continued to partner with Just Harvest and the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank at 18 farmers markets and 13 mobile market stops (which expanded to six new neighborhoods from 2016), providing SNAP shoppers with $15,680 more in fresh produce, reaching close to 1,081 SNAP shoppers. In Reading, Penn Street Market staff and their "street team" visited local businesses and organizations to promote the market to both customers and local business owners. As result of their outreach efforts, Penn Street Market reached $1,570 in SNAP sales during the 2017 season. Additionally, other small markets were able to expand or introduce SNAP incentives for the first time in Chester, Norristown, and Washington County. Grocery Retailers: During Year 3, Food Trust staff continued to work with Fresh Grocer to bring an electronic SNAP incentive program to two more Philadelphia supermarkets, bringing the total to 5 participating stores. The 2017 grant year also saw the first full year of a SNAP incentive program operating continuously at Olivares Food Market (South Philadelphia), a corner store active in Philadelphia's Healthy Corner Store network. During the grant year, this store had ~6,000 SNAP transactions, resulting in $18,337 redemptions of Bucks for fresh fruits and vegetables. As more retailers become aware of the FINI program, The Food Trust has continued to connect with existing retail partners as well as forge relationships to explore opportunities in the future. Farmers: There are now over 100 vendors increasing sales of locally grown fruits and vegetables, thanks to the FINI program in Pennsylvania. In Year 3, The Food Trust's farmers market team in Philadelphia worked with 75 unique vendors selling SNAP-eligible products and 50 farmers who grow/sell fruits & vegetables only, an increase from 42 last year. In Pittsburgh, Just Harvest worked with 27 farmers across 18 markets to bring fresh produce to SNAP shoppers through their Fresh Access program; the city of Reading's Penn Street Market worked with four produce vendors during the 2017 season. Across the board, farmers have become more aware of and have benefitted from the Food Bucks program. Statewide and Community Partners: In Philadelphia, the project team worked with a variety of other organizations that operate farmers markets to become redemption partners, which further expanded the reach of Food Bucks to additional neighborhoods in the city. Across Pennsylvania, The Food Trust spent time planning for the farmers market season with local organizations operating markets in their respective cities. Some examples: in Southeastern Pennsylvania, The Food Trust worked with Berks Agricultural Resources Network during a time of the market's transition to this new operator, to continue Food Bucks at the Penn Street Market (Berks County), and with Community Action Development Commission in Norristown, PA (Montgomery County) to continue Food Bucks at the Norristown Farmers Market. We also worked with Philabundance, who owned the Fare and Square supermarket where the farmers market was stationed, to continue Chester Food Bucks at the Chester Farmers Market (Delaware County, PA). We connected with the Penn State Extension and the PA Department of Agriculture to plan for in-store events and upcoming Food Bucks promotions. In Pittsburgh, we continued to work with local partner Just Harvest to operate the program at 18 farmers markets and the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank at 13 mobile market stops, to further serve SNAP shoppers in greater Allegheny County. Changes/Problems:Supermarket Program Models: A key challenge remains operationalizing an incentive program, given the limitations of point-of-sale systems in supermarkets. The Food Trust has established several ways to distribute incentives effectively, though many methods still have limitations, and a goal remains to increase redemption amounts. In the year ahead (during our no-cost extension over the next year), we will implement several strategies that we've identified to boost incentive redemptions in a scalable way and reach more SNAP shoppers, while at the same time making the model as easy as possible for shoppers and retailers. Consistency among Multiple Incentive Programs: One challenge we faced in Pittsburgh and Reading is the need to keep incentives consistent among different market sites for easier customer use. The Food Trust has allowed its Food Bucks program partners some flexibility in how they operate incentive programs, particularly for partners who had operated programs before FINI or who have secured additional funding to sustain the program. For example, The Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank secured additional funding from an outside partner to offer a 100% match to shoppers using SNAP at the Green Grocer Mobile Market and started printing their own incentives, rather than using The Food Trust's Food Bucks. Since the incentives looked different and the match amount was different, shoppers were no longer able to spend the same incentives between the Just Harvest-run farmers markets and the Food Bank-run mobile market. In the future, we will be rolling out a plan for a more seamless redemption system between these two partners' programs, to be introduced later in 2018. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?As with all previous Food Bucks seasons at farmers markets, The Food Trust provided a comprehensive training to all 2017 market associates and partner markets in Philadelphia and around the state. In the five Fresh Grocer supermarkets, promotion and technical assistance were provided in the form of weekly check-ins with front-end managers, customer service staff, and store managers to troubleshoot problems, resolve issues, manage signage and review general success and challenges of implementation. Project staff also took part in various professional development trainings, including the Academy's Center for Lifelong Learning Online Modules for Food as a Key Component of Nutrition, the Pennsylvania Farmers Market Managers Conference in Slippery Rock Pennsylvania and Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture (PASA) Conference in February 2018. In October 2017, The Food Trust also convened its network of statewide partners for a webinar focused on implementing SNAP incentive programs in rural areas, presented by fellow FINI grantee Ecology Center. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?The program results have been disseminated to several stakeholders, including nonprofit professionals, anti-hunger advocates, academics, students, and retailers. The Food Trust presented on a FINI panel at the annual National Grocers Association Conference, an event which attracts thousands of independent retailers from across the country and provided an opportunity to publicize and explain the FINI program to industry members. Another key meeting was the Food and Nutrition Service Mid-Atlantic Regional Office's webinar for local FINI grantees. Other presentations have been offered at University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and at Food Conscious. The results of this grant were highlighted in the "Power of Produce" report. In spring 2018, The Food Trust, along with Fair Food Network and Wholesome Wave, released a new report entitled, "The Power of Produce: Healthy Food Incentives Empower Families, Support Farmers and Lift Up Communities." The report serves as a resource for practitioners to help them clearly explain to a broad audience what SNAP incentive programs do, and to provide a print/online document that is available for use nationwide. The Power of Produce takes readers through the history of SNAP incentive programs to the present day, highlighting effective innovations across the country and making the case for why these initiatives are a win-win-win for families, farmers and communities. Authoring the report with The Food Trust was a collaborative process among leaders in the field, and included case studies from other FINI grantees, such as the Ecology Center. Food Trust staff also participated in a panel discussion at the annual meeting of the National Grocers Association in Las Vegas, attended by retail and wholesale grocers across the country. The Food Trust was invited toparticipate in a panel to discuss FINI-funded SNAP incentive projects. The paneldiscussed how The Food Trust and other grantees have launched programs, conducted community outreach, andovercome challenges. The panelist also presented evaluation data, and explainedhow interested can retailers get involved. In addition, Food Trust staff participated in Wholesome Wave's Learning Collaborative for nutrition incentives in grocery retail as well as the Food and Nutrition Service Mid-Atlantic Regional Office's webinar for local FINI grantees. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Plans for the year ahead are summarized for each type of retail venue participating in the Food Bucks program across Pennsylvania: Farmers Markets: The FINI program at farmers markets has grown significantly in the last 3 years and has also streamlined operations through the development of a new printed Food Buck as well as an online database system. During the final grant year, we will ensure that these tools can be well utilized by partners, and also have discussions with partners about long-term sustainability with regard to market operations and funding for incentives. Interactive nutrition education will continue to take place at numerous farmers market sites, and some new Food Bucks sites are opening during the 2018 season. In Pittsburgh, The Food Trust will continue to work with partners Just Harvest and the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank to streamline their Food Bucks incentive programs, making them easier to use for existing shoppers and to promote to new shoppers. As of June 2018, both partners now use the same Food Bucks to enable Food Bucks earned at any farmers market or mobile market location to be spent at any other farmers market or mobile market location. In addition, The Food Trust will work with the Allegheny County Health Department on co-branded outreach materials to promote all Food Bucks participating sites throughout the county. This will be a major improvement, since previously, partner organizations promoted their component of the Food Bucks program, but not all of the distribution and redemption locations. Being able to share complete program information with a wider audience will help bring more shoppers to the markets and increase Food Bucks distribution and redemption at all sites. Grocery Stores: The project team will work with our key retail partners to test several additional incentive models in order to reach more SNAP shoppers, including: Distributing coupons through a state agency-initiated mailing to SNAP clients in targeted zip codes. Lowering the minimum threshold in order to receive coupons for shoppers who are using EBT benefits. Allowing shoppers to earn coupons on anything SNAP-eligible. Developing a system that is less reliant on cashiers recognizing SNAP transactions and entering a coupon code. Programming a new digital distribution system that allows cloud-based storage of coupons. We will also look to expand to an additional retailer chain in the Philadelphia area. Corner Stores: Given the strong relationships that The Food Trust has developed in the Philadelphia area through its Healthy Corner Store Initiative, and the learnings of the FINI incentive program over the last few years, we will look to expand to at least one more corner store in the Philadelphia area in 2018. The FINI program would complement other work led by The Food Trust and other partners to support small retailers with adding outdoor produce sales and improving procurement of fresh produce.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
The overall goal of this FINI Project is to implement and evaluate an expanded effort in Pennsylvania to improve the affordability of local and other fresh fruits and vegetables for SNAP participants at farmers markets, mobile farm markets, corner stores, and supermarkets through SNAP incentive programming. What was accomplished under these goals? During Year 3, we continued expanding the Food Bucks network, now in over 70 retail settings in 6 counties across PA. Incentive distribution models and tracking systems were refined to offer the most effective program in each retail setting. From 2015-2017, the project enabled shoppers to take home an additional $100,000 in fresh produce, and the program demonstrated its intended effects of: 1) increasing shoppers' produce intake, and 2) increasing produce sales (much of it locally grown) for farmers and other small business owners. During Year 3 (April 1, 2017 to March 31, 2018), we worked with partners to operate SNAP incentive programs at 77 farmers markets and mobile market sites in PA, mostly in low-income communities. The number of sites and total SNAP sales increased from the previous year. For example, the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank's Green Grocer Mobile Market expanded its locations from seven to 13 sites and almost doubled sales from 2016. Supermarkets and corner store incentive programs also made noteworthy progress. Two more Fresh Grocersupermarkets were added (5 total) to the program in greater Philadelphia. We also ramped up outreach, SNAP-Ed nutrition education, and taste testing at these supermarkets and developed a more efficient Catalina coupon model. In corner stores, we continued Philly Food Bucks at Olivares Food Market in South Philadelphia--its first full year of continuously operating a SNAP incentive program. The result: a 175% increase in produce units sold following the Food Bucks launch. Objective #1. Increase SNAP sales, redemptions, and positive impact of Food Bucks and SNAP benefits among SNAP participants at farmers markets and mobile markets. Major Activities Completed We continued incentive programs and added new sites across PA to boost SNAP participation and incentive use at farmers markets and mobile markets. In total, 53 farmers markets and 13 mobile market sites in PA operated Food Bucks programs. Most farmers markets used a model in which for every $5 spent using SNAP, a $2 paper Food Buck was given, redeemable only for fresh produce. Data Collected Total SNAP sales $ amount of incentives distributed and redeemed Number of participating market sites Customer and vendor surveys Summary Statistics and Key Outcomes In Philadelphia, participating farmers markets ran 5,400 SNAP transactions during the 2017 season, generating $65,747 in SNAP sales: a 5% increase in overall SNAP sales (and 41% increase in SNAP transactions) compared to 2016. $31,000 in Food Bucks were distributed to SNAP customers, producing $18,000 in Food Buck redemptions. Customer surveys (n=839) at 20 farmers markets (primarily in low-income neighborhoods) found that 81% of shoppers reported Food Bucks were important or very important to supporting their fresh produce purchases; 70% reported the incentives increased their produce consumption. In the Pittsburgh region, Just Harvest distributed $14, 275 in SNAP incentives, with a strikingly high redemption rate of 87%. The Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank's Green Grocer Mobile Market reached 6 more high-need neighborhoods and redeemed $3,228 in Food Bucks in 2017 (doubling Food Bucks redemption from 2016). Together, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and other partner markets in regions across PA, including Chester, Norristown, Reading, and Washington County, totaled $102,621 in SNAP sales and $56,640 in Food Bucks redemption in Year 3. Objective #2: Improve access to affordable fresh produce in Philadelphia's Promise Zone, through an integrated Food Bucks program that provides access at a supermarket. Major Activities Completed As mentioned, Fresh Grocer operated Philly Food Bucks at 5 supermarkets in Philadelphia, two serving the West Philadelphia Promise Zone. An updated electronic incentive and new promotional materials were introduced for SNAP customers using the store loyalty card, and sales data were collected and analyzed by Wakefern Food Corporation. The program was supplemented by Food Trust-led nutrition education and taste tests, using "Heart Smarts," our SNAP-Ed approved curriculum. Data Collected Total number of individual coupons distributed during the promotion Total $ amount of incentives distributed and redeemed Average transactions for SNAP and produce Customer surveys from nutrition education lessons Summary Statistics and Key Outcomes Results for the five Fresh Grocer stores in Philadelphia (September 2017 through March 2018) included: 6,165 individual $2 coupons were distributed during the promotion, reaching approximately 1,494 shoppers. A total of $12,330 was distributed and $2310 was redeemed on fresh produce (18.7% redemption rate, which is significantly higher than standard supermarket coupon redemption). Shoppers who participated in both nutrition lessons and incentives were 46% more likely to purchase produce at the store that day compared to shoppers who only attended lessons. Objective #3: Increase SNAP sales of regional produce for farmers who vend at PA farmers markets offering Food Bucks. Major Activities Completed During Year 3, The Food Trust worked with 75 farmers selling SNAP-eligible products in Philadelphia across 20 markets. In Pittsburgh, Just Harvest worked with 27 farmers across 18 markets to bring fresh produce to SNAP shoppers. In Reading, Penn Street Market worked with four produce vendors, similar to other small cities with participating markets, such as Norristown (Montgomery County) and Chester (Delaware County). Data Collected Total SNAP sales $ amount of incentives distributed and redeemed Summary Statistics and Key Outcomes Please see analysis of SNAP sales under Objective #1. Objective #4: Development of a replicable model, with ready-to-disseminate tools and resources, for the Food Bucks program. Major Activities Completed Year 3 activities advanced our efforts to develop replicable models for Food Bucks programming. For the SNAP incentive program in a corner store (Olivares), we developed a year-round model utilizing the store's POS system. For farmers markets, we developed a new, lower-cost Food Buck with a scan-able bar code, and further refined an online database enabling multiple partners to track incentive distribution/redemption and vendor payments. Data Collected Total $ amount of incentives distributed and redeemed in corner stores Number of produce items sold and $ amount of produce sales (during baseline and intervention periods) in corner store Summary Statistics and Key outcomes Olivares Food Market was a highlight of this year's efforts, demonstrating a successful incentive program in a corner store setting. In a 12-month period, the store redeemed $18,582 Bucks, with a 75% redemption rate: the highest rate among all grocery store venues offering Philly Food Bucks. Comparison of a 6-month period in 2017 vs the same timeframe in 2016 (before the incentives were introduced) showed a 175% increase in produce units sold. Much of this success was attributable to Olivares' dedicated owner, who assisted with outreach to SNAP customers. We had previously worked with the store to install an electronic POS system, enabling us to add a touchscreen button to track incentives for SNAP customers. POS data allowed for a deeper understanding of FINI impact, and easier tracking of seasonal trends. As the project continues, POS system expertise will continue to inform our work and strengthen reporting capabilities.
Publications
- Type:
Other
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2018
Citation:
The Power of Produce: Healthy Food Incentives Empower Families, Support Farmers and Lift Up Communities, The Food Trust's Center for Healthy Food Access, Fair Food Network & Wholesome Wave (2018), thefoodtrust.org/uploads/media_items/the-power-of-produce.original.pdf.
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Progress 04/01/16 to 03/31/17
Outputs
Target Audience:SNAP Users: In its second year, The Food Trust's Food Bucks program reached SNAP families in underserved and low-income areas of Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, as well as the cities of Chester, Norristown, and Reading Pennsylvania, that are in need of increased access to healthy food. In 2016, The Food Trust operated 22 farmers markets in Philadelphia, most of which were located in areas lacking access to affordable, nutritious food. Additionally, eight farm stands run by community partners and urban farmers participated in the Food Bucks program. Through use of Food Bucks, SNAP recipients increased their purchasing power to buy fresh, local produce by 40% and spent $62,832 in SNAP at Philly Farmers Markets during the 2016 farmers market season. In Philadelphia supermarkets, the Food Bucks program expanded from one to three supermarkets in underserved areas of the city, serving shoppers in West and North Philadelphia, areas where at least 30% of residents live at or below the poverty line, and providing greater access to healthy, affordable food. During this reporting period, the Philly Food Bucks program reached approximately 4,700 SNAP shoppers in both farmers markets and supermarkets. In Pittsburgh, The Food Trust partnered with Just Harvest and the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank at 18 farmers markets and 7 new mobile markets, providing SNAP shoppers with$16,162 more in fresh produce, reaching close to 2,000 SNAP shoppers. Before the launch of the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank's Green Grocer Mobile Market, the Food Bank's team worked with the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health to conduct GIS mapping. When creating these maps, the Food Bank's team used various tools, including the USDA Food Desert Map and Just Harvest's "A Menu for Food Justice and they considered measures such as distance from grocery stores and farmers markets to identify 16 neighborhoods within Allegheny County with the greatest barriers to accessing fresh food. Consequently, the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank introduced the Green Grocer mobile market to 7 neighborhoods throughout Allegheny County. In the city of Reading, PA, outreach was conducted bilingually to promote the Penn Street Market, in English and Spanish, given that the city is almost 60% Latino. Outreach was done via traditional forms of advertising (print, radio, and marketing materials), as well as through the premier bilingual magazine in Reading and Spanish language radio shows from local colleges and radio stations. ReDesign Reading, the local community partner, also contracted a local company to create an instructional video, in both English and Spanish, explaining how shoppers can earn incentives at the market. This video can be downloaded from ReDesign Reading's website and played via the sound system at market, every hour, on the hour. ReDesign Reading also hired bilingual high school students from I-Lead Charter School in Reading's downtown to work as market ambassadors, using word-of-mouth to help neighbors and families in Reading learn about the Food Bucks program. In Chester and Norristown, The Food Trust worked with community partners to promote each city's respective market and the Food Bucks program. Overall, in the cities of Reading, Chester, and Norristown, the Food Bucks program helped low-income residents afford $1,070 more in fresh fruits and vegetables. Farmers: During the reporting period from April 1, 2016 to March 31, 2017, The Food Trust's farmers market team worked with 42 local producers and growers to bring Food Bucks to 30 farmers markets in Philadelphia. In Pittsburgh, Just Harvest worked with 29 farmers across 18 markets to bring fresh produce to SNAP shoppers through their Fresh Access program. Fresh Access is a program that enables farmers markets to accept SNAP and more recently, SNAP incentives. Last year, the Fresh Access program saw a 12% increase in sales compared with the 2015 season. In Berks County, ReDesign Reading worked with 8 local producers to bring Food Bucks users more fresh fruits and vegetables at Reading's Penn Street Market. Grocers: During the reporting period, Food Trust staff continued to work with the Burns Family Fresh Grocer stores, a supermarket chain that operates nine grocery stores in Delaware and Southeastern Pennsylvania, to bring an electronic SNAP incentive program to two new Philadelphia locations, in addition to the store that participated in the program in 2015 (the first grant year). The project team also launched phase two of Food Bucks in Olivares Food Market, a Philadelphia corner store that is a part of The Food Trust's healthy corner store network. Olivares offered Food Bucks to shoppers during all hours that the store was open for operation. The project team also continued planning with other area grocers, with the goal of rolling out Food Bucks to additional locations serving low-income shoppers. Community Partners: In Philadelphia, the project team worked with a variety of other organizations that operate farmers markets to become redemption partners, which further expanded the reach of Food Bucks to additional neighborhoods in the city. These expansion partners included farmers markets operated by Walnut Hill Community Farm, Philly Urban Creators, and Urban Tree Connection. Across Pennsylvania, The Food Trust spent time planning for the coming farmers market season with local organizations that operate markets in their respective cities. In Southeastern Pennsylvania, The Food Trust worked with ReDesign Reading to roll out Reading Food Bucks at the Penn Street Market (Berks County); with Community Action Development Commission (CADCOM) in Norristown, PA (Montgomery County) to roll out Food Bucks at the Norristown Farmers Market; and the American Heart Association to support the continuation of Chester Food Bucks at the Chester Farmers Market (Delaware County, PA). In Pittsburgh, The Food Trust continued to work with local partner Just Harvest to promote the Fresh Access program at 18 farmers markets and the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank at 7 new mobile market stops, to further serve SNAP shoppers in greater Allegheny County. Changes/Problems:Grocery Store Model Challenges: In 2015, The Food Trust ran its first SNAP incentive promotion at a Fresh Grocer location in West Philadelphia. When shoppers used their ACCESS card at the register along with their store loyalty card and purchased at least $5 of fresh produce, shoppers earned a $2 coupon redeemable at a future purchase. The incentive was completely electronic but was not available for immediate use (the coupon was actually available two weeks after the shopper made her initial purchase), nor was redemption limited to produce purchases only. For this reason, the project team made the decision to test a new model. In Year 2, the project team organized another promotion at three Fresh Grocer stores, using a slightly different model. Instead of the coupon being completely electronic, when a shopper made an eligible purchase (purchased at least $5 of fresh produce and used their ACCESS card and store loyalty card), the coupon loaded manually onto the store loyalty card and was available for print two weeks later. Since the coupon printed out at the register, shoppers needed to make another purchase before they received the print out and were required to present it to get the savings. Ultimately, we found this model did not yield a desired redemption rate, since coupon redemptions were much lower than in the first promotion. We want to ensure that our program model adheres to the goals of the FINI grant by verifying that shoppers have fresh produce items in their basket at the time of redemption, but we also want ensure that shoppers are aware that they are receiving this benefit. Ultimately, we want to adopt a program model that ensures program fidelity but is also easy to use and is customer friendly. That said, in the third grant year we will implement a revamped coupon model in Fresh Grocer stores that meets the above-mentioned requirements. For Year 3, we are working with the Fresh Grocer to develop a new model that will engage customers, as well as cashiers, but will also be easy to use and will provide coupons to shoppers immediately at the point-of-sale. We plan to roll out this promotion in summer 2017. Partner's availability: Incorporating a SNAP incentive into the existing point-of-sale software is a major undertaking at The Fresh Grocer, even for a large grocery company with robust IT capacity. Although we work well with the Fresh Grocer marketing and IT teams, we have experienced occasional delays in initiation of the program due to staff timelines and availability. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?As with all previous Food Bucks seasons at farmers markets, The Food Trust provided a comprehensive training to all 2016 market associates and partner markets in Philadelphia and around the state. This season, more intensive training was provided to partner markets to increase their capacity to not only implement, but also promote, their respective Food Bucks programs around the state. At the three Fresh Grocers locations, Food Trust staff provided on-site training and written guides to front-of-the-house staff (including cashiers, customer service manager, and produce department staff) to demonstrate how to promote the purchase of fresh fruits and vegetables and how to best communicate with customers how to earn Philly Food Bucks. This training was also provided to Food Trust staff who provide SNAP-Ed nutrition lessons in these stores. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?As mentioned previously, The Food Trust presented at the University of Vermont Food Systems Summit in Burlington at a session titled "Good Food for All: Making Healthy Food Affordable for Low-Income and At-Risk Populations" with partners from Lankenau Hospital in Montgomery County, PA and Green Mountain Farm to School in Newport, VT. Project staff also presented at Westat's Evaluation Webinar in September 2016 as well as Wholesome Wave's Learning Collaborative on nutrition incentives in grocery stores in January 2017 and the national APHA conference. At these presentations, attendees included nonprofit professionals, advocates, and community leaders from around the country who work in anti-hunger, food justice, and community development who either do similar work or are seeking to support similar programming. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Farmers Markets: For the 2017 farmers market season (May through November), the project team plans to add two new farmers market partner sites in low-income, underserved neighborhoods in Philadelphia. In Pittsburgh, The Food Trust will continue to work with Just Harvest and the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank to add redemption sites, for a total of 29, and expand the network further by coordinating cross-redemption between the 18 farmers market and 11 mobile market retail sites. Additionally, Just Harvest plans to incorporate cooking demonstrations at two of the Fresh Access farmers markets. After one year of operations, the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank's Green Grocer Mobile Market hopes to open another four sites by early summer. The success of the Green Grocer mobile market has also presented some exciting opportunities, which includes a local town's interest in hosting a second mobile market stop. Furthermore, the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank successfully received funding from Citizens Bank to support expansion of its Food Bucks program, increasing the amount of Food Bucks earned from a $2 for every $5 model, to offering SNAP shoppers a dollar-for-dollar match when they use their benefits at any of the mobile market locations. The Food Bank has also conducted neighborhood and customer surveys in partnership with the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health and will move on to collect more qualitative data through focus groups and community meetings. Additionally, University of Pittsburgh has applied for additional funding to continue this evaluation for a five-year period. In addition to working with partners from Year 1 of the FINI grant (2015), The Food Trust will continue working with partners in Reading, Norristown, and Chester to implement Food Bucks at each city's market for the 2017 farmers market season and, excitingly, plans to add two new farmers markets to the statewide network, one in the city of Ambler in Southeastern PA, and the other Washington County in the southwest region of the state. Grocers: The Food Trust and Fresh Grocer plan to expand the Philly Food Bucks program in 2017 by operating in seven supermarket locations in greater Philadelphia (four more than in Year 2),providing a longer and more continuous promotion period, and a more refined redemption model (described below). The Food Trust will also continue conversations with other local grocery stores, with the plan of rolling out Food Bucks with least one more additional supermarket partner. In corner stores, The Food Trust will continue the successful implementation of Philly Food Bucks at Olivares Food Market in South Philadelphia and will implement plans to evaluate the next phase of Philly Food Bucks (where incentives were offered during all operating hours) in Olivares Food Market in August 2017.The evaluation plan includes reviewing data from the store's point-of-sale system to match Food Buck redemptions with transactions to determine the volume and type of produce that was purchased when incentives were redeemed. Statewide Network: As mentioned above, we expect to expand The Food Trusts' Pennsylvania Food Bucks Network by supporting at least two new SNAP incentive programs at farmers markets in the city of Ambler in Southeastern PA, and in Washington County in the southwest region of the state. The Food Trust will also continue to grow its statewide communications network of program managers by hosting its second webinar and coordinating interactions between groups operating SNAP incentive programs across the state. The project team will also continue to gather data from Food Trust staff and partners to assist in the continued improvement of the Food Bucks database.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
In Year 2, The Food Trust continued expanding its Food Bucks network, serving 51 farmers markets and mobile markets in low-income communities in Pennsylvania. Overall, $40,395 in Food Bucks were redeemed in Year 2, reaching ~6,000 SNAP shoppers, and nearly two-thirds of Food Bucks participants reported increasing their consumption of fruits and vegetables since starting the program. In Philadelphia, Food Bucks were offered at 22 Food Trust markets and eight partners' markets, including four new sites. SNAP sales reached $62,832 in 2016, with 3,820 transactions (4% increase from 2015). Also, an electronic Food Bucks program was offered in three Fresh Grocer supermarkets, including two new locations: one store serving the Promise Zone in West Philly; the other in North Philadelphia, in a Health Enterprise Zone. The program in all three stores included nutrition education lessons and taste tests led by trained Food Trust SNAP-Ed educators, who promoted the program with culturally-appropriate education on healthy eating. In Pittsburgh, Just Harvest's Fresh Access program had a 12% increase in SNAP sales, totaling $43,602 at 18 markets. Just Harvest distributed $16,985 in SNAP incentives with a redemption rate of 92%. The Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank also rolled out its Green Grocer Mobile Market to serve seven more locations in Pittsburgh and greater Allegheny County, offering SNAP and Bucks for the first time. Food Bucks were also introduced in Reading and Norristown, and continued at the Chester, PA Farmers Market. In Reading, spending by at-risk populations tripled at the farmers market, with SNAP sales reaching $2,290 and $968 in Food Bucks redemption (84% redemption rate). The Food Trust continued growing its statewide Food Bucks Network across PA, hosting its first webinar with statewide partners to discuss their incentive projects and strategies to make further progress. Our staff implemented new tools and resources, including a database to track Food Bucks distribution and redemption across multiple farmers markets across PA. The team also implemented trainings for community partners across the state. Objective #1. Increase SNAP sales, redemptions, and positive impact of Food Bucks and SNAP benefits among SNAP participants at farmers markets and mobile markets. In Year 2, The Food Trust and partners operated SNAP incentive programs at 51 farmers markets and 7 mobile markets in southeast and southwest Pennsylvania. Farmers markets operated on a model with a $2 paper Food Buck given for every $5 spent at a farmers market, redeemable only for fresh produce.Together, participating markets had over $105,000 in SNAP sales (see above for city-specific data). In Philadelphia, evaluation also found that 85% of Bucks users reported purchasing a fruit or vegetable at market that day. Objective #2: Improve access to affordable fresh produce in Philadelphia's Promise Zone, through an integrated Food Bucks program that provides access at a supermarket. Fresh Grocer offered Food Bucks at three supermarkets in Philadelphia, two in the West Philadelphia Promise Zone and one in North Philadelphia. An updated electronic incentive was introduced for SNAP customers using the free store loyalty card (Price Plus Club card). The card was used to identify incentive earners through the point-of-sale system, using SNAP transaction history. For every $5 spent on fresh produce, customers earned a $2 digital coupon redeemable at a future visit, with over $200 available in potential earnings for each Philly Food Bucks user. The Fresh Grocer program included nutrition education and taste tests by trained SNAP-Ed educators. Sales data were collected and analyzed by Wakefern Food Corp., which owns Fresh Grocer. During the 20-week promotion in three stores (Nov. 2016 to March 2017), 6,329 individual coupons were distributed worth $12,658, and $2,264 were redeemed on fresh produce (18% redemption rate). Customers redeemed ~$113 per week on fresh produce during the promotion. Surveys found that 70% of Bucks users reported the incentives were important in helping them purchase produce, and 68% increased their consumption of produce since using Bucks. Another highlight: The Food Trust's SNAP-Ed team provided 61 nutrition lessons, taste tests, and program promotion at the three supermarkets, using Heart Smarts, a curriculum developed for use in grocery stores by The Food Trust. Objective #3: Increase SNAP sales of regional fruits and vegetables for farmers who vend at PA farmers markets offering Food Bucks through the project. As Food Bucks expanded in PA, more partners became engaged in the program. For example: In Reading, The Food Trust worked with a local economic development organization, ReDesign Reading, to bring Food Bucks to the Penn Street Market, Reading's oldest farmers market. With support from the Friends of Reading Hospital, The Food Trust offered nutrition education, cooking lessons, and giveaways. In Norristown, with the County Commissioners Office and the Community Action Development Commission (CADCOM), Food Bucks were introduced at the Norristown Farmers Market. CADCOM, which runs anti-hunger programs, worked with Food Trust staff to publicize the program at local food pantries and at on-site nutrition education. In Chester, the project team continued Food Bucks for the third year at the Chester Community Hospital Farmers Market, serving a city where 33% of residents live in poverty. Promotion of Bucks and the market was critical and supported by the American Heart Association and community partners at local health fairs, churches, and community centers. In Pittsburgh, Just Harvest had another successful year with its Fresh Access Program at 18 farmers markets. Just Harvest distributed over 5,000 printed materials to almost 100 organizations, including senior centers, neighborhood organizations, and partner organizations such as the Department of Human Services and area WIC offices. Another accomplishment: The project team met with government agencies that support in the success of SNAP incentive programming at their local markets, such as the Montgomery County Commissioner's Office and the Norristown School Board, who worked together to support Food Bucks and nutrition education at the Norristown Farmers Market. Objective #4: Development of a replicable model, with ready-to disseminate tools and resources, for the Food Bucks program. In March 2017, project team held a webinar for 13 statewide network partners to learn about SNAP incentive programs around PA and discuss further collaboration. This list included: Just Harvest, ReDesign Reading, Rodale Institute, Buy Fresh Buy Local of Greater Lehigh Valley, Farm to City, Chester County Food Bank, Community Action Development Commission (CADCOM), Fair Food Philly, Swarthmore Farmers Market, Penn State Extension, Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, Commission on Economic Opportunity, and Washington County Farmers Market, Inc. Another highlight: The statewide Food Bucks expansion drew considerable media attention, raising public awareness of the project. In September 2016, the Reading Food Bucks program was featured on "The Voice" at 830AM WEEU, a radio show on a local news/talk station. The Reading Food Bucks program was also featured in an article on the web version of the Reading Eagle, a local newspaper. In Pittsburgh, the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank was asked to start a mobile market distribution site at a new healthy corner store. Two local hospitals also expressed interest in having the mobile market serve patients at nutrition education classes for low-income patients with type II diabetes, furthering program reach to at-risk populations.
Publications
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Accepted
Year Published:
2016
Citation:
The Food Trust presented "Expanding Philly Food Bucks to Reach SNAP Customers in Multiple Retail Settings" at the American Public Health Associations Annual Meeting & Exposition in October 2016, together with partners from Wholesome Wave, Fair Food Network, the Washington State Department of Health, and the University of Delaware.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Accepted
Year Published:
2016
Citation:
In June 2016, The Food Trust, with partners from Lankenau Hospital in Montgomery County, PA and Green Mountain Farm to School in Newport, VT, presented on SNAP incentive work at the University of Vermont Food Systems Summit in Burlington. The session was titled Good Food for All: Making Healthy Food Affordable for Low-Income and At-Risk Populations.
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Progress 04/01/15 to 03/31/16
Outputs
Target Audience:SNAP Users: The Food Trust's Food Bucks program reached SNAP families in underserved and low-income areas of Philadelphia and Pittsburgh that are in need of increased access to healthy food. In Philadelphia, 18 of 23 Food Trust farmers markets serve areas where more than 70% of residents within the market's census tract live at or below the federal poverty line. Additionally, 33.7% of shoppers at our Philadelphia farmers markets have children under the age of 18 living in their households. During this reporting period, the Philly Food Bucks program reached approximately 8,000 SNAP shoppers in both farmers market and supermarket settings. In Pittsburgh (Allegheny County, Southwestern Pennsylvania) where in 2012 only two farmers markets accepted SNAP benefits, this number increased during the grant period to 15 markets, reaching 3,727 SNAP customers in 2015. Farmers: During the reporting period (April 1, 2015 to March 31, 2016), The Food Trust worked to attract new farmers to build a more robust network of fresh food vendors for the 2016 farmers market season in Philadelphia. Food Trust staff attended the 2016 Mid-Atlantic Fruit and Vegetable Convention in New Holland, Pennsylvania, which is a large draw for the local Amish farming community, to promote opportunities for farmers to vend at urban markets. The Food Trust also implemented a social media campaign and built partnerships with the Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture and the Penn State Extension Nutrition Links program to recruit new, local farmers who grow a range of fresh produce and are willing to work in low-income communities. In Pittsburgh, Just Harvest worked with 31 farmers across 15 markets to bring fresh produce to SNAP shoppers through their Fresh Access program. Fresh Access is a program that enables farmers markets to accept food stamps and more recently (as of 2015), SNAP incentives. As a result, over 90% of vendors reported being "very satisfied" with the Fresh Access program and during the May through October 2015 farmers market season in Pittsburgh, vendors reported that their businesses earned on average an additional $1,532 because of the Fresh Access program. Grocers: During the reporting period, Food Trust staff worked with The Fresh Grocer, a supermarket chain that operates seven stores in Delaware and Southeastern Pennsylvania, to bring an electronic SNAP incentive program to one of their supermarkets in Philadelphia serving the Promise Zone (in West Philadelphia), for the first time. It was crucial to develop relationships with the parent grocer cooperative, Wakefern, and its information technology staff who manage all of their electronic coupon programs. The project team also continued conversations with a Philadelphia corner store owner to plan the roll out of Philly Food Bucks in this new setting. Community Partners: In Philadelphia, The Food Trust worked closely with the Mayor's Office of Community Empowerment and Opportunity (Philadelphia's designated Promise Zone Office) as well as neighborhood civic organizations and community members to increase awareness of the expansion of the Philly Food Bucks program to additional retail settings. The project team also worked with other organizations in Philadelphia that operate farmers markets outside of The Food Trust's immediate network to become redemption partners, expanding the reach of Food Bucks to additional neighborhoods in the city. Expansion partners include farmers market locations operated by Greensgrow Farms, SHARE food program, Farm to City, and Fair Food Philly. In Pittsburgh, Just Harvest worked with community partners to promote the Fresh Access program and the introduction of Food Bucks to SNAP shoppers in the city of Pittsburgh and greater Allegheny County. As part of Just Harvest's outreach plan for 2015, their team received commitments from 59 community organizations to help promote the Fresh Access program. Another partner, the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank, worked with community groups in Pittsburgh and greater Allegheny County, including the LifeSpan Senior Center, Bethesda Presbyterian Church, and Pittsburgh Community Services Inc., to plan five stops for their mobile market. The Green Grocer mobile market launched in early 2016 and travels to underserved communities to provide fresh food options that are not available elsewhere. In the city of Reading (Berks County, Southeastern Pennsylvania), The Food Trust worked extensively with Redesign Reading, the civic organization operating Reading's Penn Street Farmers Market, to plan the introduction of Reading Food Bucks for the market for the 2016 farmers market season (May to November). The Food Trust also worked with community partners in the cities of Norristown and Chester (Southeastern Pennsylvania, in Montgomery and Delaware Counties) to plan the roll out of the Chester Food Bucks and Norristown Food Bucks programs at their farmers markets, in coordination with ongoing Food Trust-led nutrition education efforts. Changes/Problems:The project team encountered and addressed some minor challenges during the grant period which do not represent significant deviations from the stated project goals: 1.Grocery Store Technology: Incorporating a SNAP incentive into the existing point-of-sale software was a major undertaking at The Fresh Grocer, even for a large scale grocery company. The team was successful in creating an incentive which functioned correctly at the point-of-sale, though the process took longer than ideal to load the coupons onto loyalty cards. In addition, the coupon was redeemed slightly differently than expected, and not necessarily based on a minimum $2 basket quantity of fresh produce. That said, due to the messaging of the program and the important function of earning the coupon, it still had the intended effect of encouraging SNAP shoppers to purchase more produce using their benefits. Moving forward, the aim for the next promotion is to refine the supermarket model, requiring shoppers to purchase fresh fruits and vegetables at all transactions where they earn and redeem coupons. Some new methods may be piloted, including using paper coupons that print out at checkout, and working with established grocery coupon marketing services. 2.Mobile Market Delay: Since the Pittsburgh Food Bank's Green Grocer mobile market took longer than expected to launch, the incentive implementation started at the end of this reporting period. Fortunately, since there were numerous other venues to launch incentives in Pittsburgh during the 2015 season, there was still a very successful roll out in this city. ?3.Partner Market Communication: While administering a large network of Food Bucks at 45 farmers markets, an ongoing challenge has been consistent and timely communication and reporting from partner markets. Program staff has worked to provide simple templates and forms to eliminate delays in reporting. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?As with all previous Philly Food Bucks seasons at farmers markets, The Food Trust provided a comprehensive training to all 2015 market associates and partner markets. Market associates in Philadelphia are responsible for promoting and operating the Philly Food Bucks program at farmers markets. Therefore, training included a history of SNAP and the Food Bucks program as well as best practices on how to promote use of SNAP and Food Bucks at farmers markets. As mentioned previously, a new database and barcode scanning system to track distribution and redemption of Food Bucks, as well as vendor reimbursement, were developed during the reporting period, and Food Trust staff trained Just Harvest on how to use this new technology for the 2016 season. At The Fresh Grocer, Food Trust staff provided on-site training and written guides to front-of-the-house staff (including supermarket cashiers, customer service managers, and produce department staff) to demonstrate how to promote the purchase of fresh fruits and vegetables and how to best communicate with customers what they must do to earn Philly Food Bucks. Just Harvest, in addition to participating in the training provided by Food Trust staff, in turn provided training to all Pittsburgh farmers market staff on the implementation of Fresh Access. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?The Food Trust presented with Just Harvest at the Greater Pittsburgh Nonprofit Partnership Summit Pittsburgh, PA in October 2015, to introduce and explain the new SNAP incentive program to Allegheny County partners. The project team also participated in the Wholesome Wave Nutrition Incentives Summit in Atlanta in January 2016, presenting on the expansion of The Food Trusts' Food Bucks network as a statewide initiative. At both conferences, attendees were nonprofit professionals, advocates, and community leaders from around the country who work in anti-hunger, food justice, and community development who either do similar work or are seeking to support similar programming. Results were also disseminated during a regional FINI grantee meeting as well as the accepted American Public Health Association abstract. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Farmers Markets: For the 2016 farmers market season (May through November), the project team plans to add four new farmers market partner sites in low-income, underserved neighborhoods throughout Philadelphia and provide training to market staff on how to best promote and operate a SNAP incentive program. Philadelphia expansion partners include farmers market locations operated by The Enterprise Center and Walnut Hill Community Farm, Urban Tree Connection, and Philly Urban Creators. We also plan to have a more diverse group of fresh produce vendors serving shoppers at our ongoing farmers market locations. In Pittsburgh, The Food Trust will continue to work with Just Harvest and the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank to add two new redemption sites, for a total of 17, and expand the network further by coordinating cross-redemption between 17 farmers market and 5 mobile market retail sites. For the 2016 season, the farmers market database will be made available for testing with a limited number of users (that is, The Food Trust and Just Harvest). Releasing the database in beta form will allow The Food Trust to improve its features and fix bugs before its general release. Grocers: The Food Trust and Fresh Grocer plan to expand the Philly Food Bucks program in 2016 by providing the program in 3 supermarkets in Philadelphia (2 more than the first reporting year), as well as offering a longer promotion period and a more refined redemption model (described below). As mentioned, we also will pilot Food Bucks in one or more corner stores starting in May 2016. Statewide Network: We expect to expand The Food Trust's Pennsylvania Food Bucks Network by supporting at least three new SNAP incentive programs at farmers markets in the cities of Reading, Norristown, and Chester, along with providing technical assistance and written training materials. The Food Trust will also develop a networking system for the statewide group of incentive program managers, coordinating conference calls and establishing an email list serve. The project team will also finalize the design of new marketing materials and templates that will be available to all network partners and will continue to gather data from partners to help us continue to improve the tracking database.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
During the first year of this 3-year FINI Project Grant, The Food Trust worked to expand its Food Bucks incentive program to additional farmers markets in Philadelphia and, for the first time, to farmers markets in Pittsburgh. The agency also piloted the Food Bucks program at a Fresh Grocer supermarket in Philadelphia and conducted planning to introduce Food Bucks at a healthy corner store. A new statewide communications network also was developed to enable project partners to easily share information and best practices. During the grant period, total Food Bucks distribution across the project sites was $48,984, and total redemption was $43,362 (88% redemption rate). The Food Trust began by expanding its existing Food Bucks program to additional farmers markets in Philadelphia and launching the statewide expansion at farmers markets, starting in Pittsburgh, in collaboration with Just Harvest. During the 2015 farmers market season (May to October), The Food Trust, Just Harvest, and additional project partners operated SNAP incentive programs at 45 farmers markets in low-income communities in the two cities. In Philadelphia, SNAP sales at farmers markets increased by 7.5% (to $54,685) over 2014 sales. In Pittsburgh, Just Harvest also had anincreasein SNAP sales, to $42,787 for the 2015 season. Approximately $34,654 in Food Bucks were redeemed at the 45 participating farmers markets in the two cities during the grant period. Evaluation conducted in fall 2015 in Philadelphia also found positive changes in shoppers' behavior at farmers markets: surveys showed that Food Bucks users were more likely than non-Food Bucks user to have purchased a fruit or vegetable at market that day and to report having tried a new fruit or vegetable since first visiting the market. The Food Trust also worked with The Fresh Grocer supermarket chain, which operates seven stores in Delaware and Southeastern Pennsylvania, to introduce an electronic version of the Food Bucks program to a supermarket serving the Promise Zone in West Philadelphia--the first such project in Pennsylvania. During the 11-week Food Bucks promotion in The Fresh Grocer during the program's first year, $11,418 in Food Bucks were distributed and $8,708 redeemed. Additionally, the Food Bucks program in The Fresh Grocer included newly developed staff training for store employees, store-based nutrition education lessons and taste tests to promote the program to shoppers, and the launch of new marketing materials and in-store promotion. Theproject team began building the infrastructure for the statewide Food Bucks communication network anddeveloped new tools and resources, including a new database to track Food Bucks distribution and redemption across multiple farmers markets in different cities. Objective 1. Increase SNAP sales, redemptions, and positive impact of Food Bucks and SNAP benefits among SNAP participants at farmers markets in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, leading to increased sales and consumption of locally grown, fresh fruits and vegetables. Major Activities Completed The Food Trust, Just Harvest and additional project partners operated SNAP incentive programs at 45 farmers markets in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. Data Collected Total SNAP sales Dollar amount of incentives distributed and redeemed Number of participating farmers markets Average food bucks redemptions per market Customer and vendor surveys (to assess shopping experience and behavior with regard to use of Food Bucks for fresh fruits and vegetables) Summary statistics and discussion of the results All of the PA Food Bucks farmers markets operate on a model in which for every $5 spent at a farmers market, a $2 paper Food Buck is given; the Bucks are only redeemable for fresh produce. This model led to approximately $34,654 of Food Bucks being redeemed at 45 participating farmers markets across the state, reaching over 9,000 SNAP shoppers across Pennsylvania. In Philadelphia, dSNAP sales at farmers markets increased by 7.5% ($54,685) over prioryear's sales. This led to $17,676 of Philly Food Bucks being redeemed at 30 participating farmers markets in Philadelphia, representing an 11% increase in Food Buck redemptions from 2014. In Greater Pittsburgh, the first year of SNAP incentives at 15 Pittsburgh farmers markets was a success: Just Harvest distributed over $18,000 in SNAP incentives, witha redemption rate of 90%, helping Pittsburgh families who used SNAP afford an additional $16,000 in fresh produce. Key Outcomes and other accomplishments realized Significant project planning was undertaken with the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank to implement Food Bucks with the launch of their new mobile market, which stops in five underserved communities in Allegheny County. Objective 2: Improve access to affordable fresh produce in Philadelphia's Promise Zone, through an integrated Food Bucks program that provides access at a supermarket and development of an innovative model for incentivizing the purchase of fresh fruit and vegetables. Major Activities Completed The Fresh Grocer location in West Philadelphia (serving Philadelphia's Promise Zone) launched an electronic incentive program for customers who used SNAP benefits to purchase fresh fruits and vegetables. Incentive earners were identified by the store's existing point-of-sale system through SNAP transaction history and use of their store loyalty card. For every $5 spent on fresh produce, customers earned a $2 digital coupon redeemable at a future visit (up to $4 in coupons per week). The Philly Food Bucks program in The Fresh Grocer also included Food Trust-led staff training, nutrition education, taste tests, the roll out of new marketing materials, and in-store promotion. Sales data were collected and analyzed by Wakefern Food Corporation, the parent company of Fresh Grocer, again through their point-of-sale system. Data Collected Total dollar amount of incentives distributed and redeemed Average dollar amount of redemptions per week Total dollar amount spent on fruits and vegetables for all SNAP transactions during the promotion period and a comparison period (same date range from 2014: 9/14/14 -11/29/14) Total number of SNAP households reached ?Summary statistics and discussion of the results Following are results from the 11-week program which ran from September to November 2015: 3,110 unique households made a qualifying fresh fruit or vegetable purchase using their SNAP benefits and store loyalty card and received the discount A total of 2,022 unique households (65%) redeemed the Philly Food Buck discounts A total of $11,418 were distributed and $8,708 were redeemed (76.2% coupon redemption rate) SNAP households participating in the Philly Food Bucks program spent more than twice as much on produce in comparison with SNAP shoppers who did not take part in the program. Comparison from previous year's purchasing behavior: A matched sample of SNAP households showed that Philly Food Bucks participants spent almost 50% more on produce during the 2015 promotion period than they did during the same time period in 2014. (The comparison was possible because of the coupon's connection to the store's loyalty card and Wakefern's ability to tracks customers' shopping behavior via the loyalty card). SNAP customers overall spent 5.9% more on produce at this supermarket in 2015 compared with the same time period in 2014. Key outcomes and other accomplishments realized As described above, the major accomplishments were implementing a successful digital SNAP incentive model at a grocery store for the first time in Pennsylvania, and documenting the resulting increase in produce purchasing among SNAP customers.
Publications
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Accepted
Year Published:
2016
Citation:
An abstract titled "Expanding Philly Food Bucks to Reach SNAP Customers in Multiple Retail Settings" was accepted for the American Public Health Associations Annual Meeting & Exposition in October 2016. The Food Trust is scheduled to deliver an oral presentation at this national conference together with partners from Wholesome Wave, Fair Food Network, the Washington Department of Health, and the University of Delaware.
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