Progress 09/01/21 to 08/31/24
Outputs
Target Audience:The target audiences are: ? 1. SNAP recipients living in areas in an accessible range of a partner site(farmers markets, farmstands, mobile markets, and brick-and-mortar retailers) throughout the state of Georgia that offers Wholesome Wave Georgia's Georgia Fresh For Less SNAP nutrition incentive program. 2. Georgia Fresh For Less Partner Site personnel & vendors selling SNAP-eligible & GF4L incentive-eligible goods Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?WWG's training for partnre sites falls into two main categories 1. Network Gathering - annual full day, in-person convening and training session for partners that emphasizes program adminsitration and policy, marketing and outreach, and community engagement using peer-to-peer learning models and formats. 2. Refresher Trainings - introduced in Year 2, these virtual sessions are aimed towards new personnel and active partner sites and aim to increase program comprension, compliance, and invesment. Over 15 sessions were offered in Years 2 and 3. Also, student interns supported participant survey data collection each year and received skills development from WWG staff in the areas of research methodology, participant survey data collection, community outreach, and benefits assistance training. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?At an annual convening for the GF4L program, Wholesome Wave Georgia informally shares results of our efforts, accomplishments, and learnings with GF4L Partner Site personnel. Wholesome Wave Georgia uses impact data in its communcation activiites, including social media posts, events, and annual reports. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?
Nothing Reported
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Wholesome Wave Georgia (WWG) is proud to report that it met and exceeded all goals in the grant. //Goal 1// :WWG will increase awareness of and participation in the GF4L program by 40% by the end of Year 3 as measured by the number of new SNAP recipients participating in the program. Actual:At the end of Year 3, Wholesome Wave Georgia increased participation by 83% (24,455EBT transactions in Year 3). WWG used the tactics laid out in the grant, including: Diversifying partner site types for increased accessibility - over 50% of new sites added, many of which had expanded days and hours of operations, offered online pre-orders, or offered delivery options. Mobile markets and brick-and-mortar retailers comprise nearly 40% of the partner site network at the end of Year 3, a major shift from baseline and a sign that diversification was achieved Adding new partner sites- WWG's goal was to add 15 Partner Sites. WWG met this goal in Year 1, and added over 25 Partner Sites total througout the duration of the award period. Marketing and Outreach- The Fresh For Less Stakeholder Advisory Group (SAG) co-developed new marketing materials for the program that were tested in Year 2 and disseminated in Year 3. In Year 3, training sessions and resources on low to no cost marketing and outreach efforts were emphasized as many partner sites faced limited budgets.Also, new signage and marketing materials were developed for brick-and-mortar and mobile market sites to better suit the site format/layout and customer experience. Partner Site Training - WWG expanded its annual and replicated the annual in-person convenin and training for partner sites each year of the award period, expanding it to a full day event and making continual improvements each year. Attendance at the events increased annually, and WWG introduced new activities to evaluate the program, increase engagement, and develop competence and skill among its partner network. WWG introduced Refresher Training sessions in Year 2 and expanded training availability in Year 3. These trainings are geared towards new personnel at existing partner sites and aim to increase program comprehension, investment, and compliance. They were attended by over 60individuals over a two year period. Innovation & Cultivation Grants - WWG used funds in Years 1 and 2 for Innovation Grants (and alternative funding source was used in Year 3), and distributed over 35 grants to partner sites during the award period to implement participant outreach, engagement, and retention initiatives at their site to reflect their community's needs and characteristics. Grantee projects vary significantly in goals and outcomes, but grantee final reports consistently demonstrate the utility of this initiative's ability to reach new SNAP recipients through the program. Plant2Plate - WWG conducted over 20Plant 2 Plate events over the duration of the award period, which continually demonstrated success in reaching new SNAP recipients (that otherwise may have been hard to reach) and increased revenue for local farmers. While successful overall, WWG observed a steady and incremental decline in attendance and participation each year. WWG believes this event series was most successfull during peak pandemic years and may need to be reworked or replaced with a different initiative moving forward. //Goal 2//WWG will increase the purchase of fruits and vegetables by SNAP recipients by 40% by the end of Year 3 as measured by an increase in the total dollar amount spent on fresh, locally grown fruits and vegetables.Actual:WWG increased Fresh For Less incentive activity by 120% by the end of Year 3 ($413,644). Cumulatively,$1,153,324 was spent by SNAP recipients on fresh fruits and vegetables using Fresh For Less incentives over the 3 year award period. Please see Goal 1 for elaboration on the activities used to achieve this goal. //Goal 3//WWG will increase its ability to develop effective strategies to reach underserved populations, increase the diversity of partner sites and ensure the cultural appropriateness of services and products provided by coordinating with diverse community members and key stakeholders in all aspects of program design, implementation and evaluation.Actual:Wholesome Wave Georgia's efforts to develop the Stakeholder Advisory Group (SAG) were very successful. By the end of Year 3, the SAG had over 20 regularly participating members who represented diverse partner site types and communities across the state.The group voted to meet monthly over quarterly and voiced interest in additional communication channels for discussion, resource sharing, and autonomously hosted meetings in-between regular monthly meetings, and WWG introduced a communications platform (Discord) to support these requests.WWG conducted activities toidentify partner member priorities and developed meeting activities to reflect and develop them. A result of this was the development of subcommittees, several new program resources and marketing materials, and coordination of the first guest speaker session from GA's SFMNP program.Efforts to engage Fresh For Less participants on a consistent and organized basis were less successful, but discussions with the SAG have identiifed a constructive way forward that emphasizes participant voices in our work. We hope to add new SAG member types in 2025 and beyond, including program participants, strategic community partners, etc, by leveraging partner members' networks and relationships. This will ensure diverse representation of new members moving forward.
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Progress 09/01/23 to 08/31/24
Outputs
Target Audience:The target audiences are: 1. SNAP recipients living in areas in an accessible range from one of our 82partner sites (farmers markets, farmstands, mobile markets, and brick-and-mortar retailers) throughout the state of Georgia who offer Wholesome Wave Georgia's Georgia Fresh For Less SNAP nutrition incentive program. 2. Georgia Fresh For Less Partner Site personnel & vendors selling SNAP-eligible & GF4L incentive-eligible goods Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?WWG provided program and outreach training to its partners at an in-person annual convening, whichemphasizedpeer-to-peer learning models. WWG also offered several refresher training sessions aimed atincreasing program comprehension and compliance with new personnel at returning partner sites who implement the Fresh For Less program. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?At an annual convening for the GF4L program, Wholesome Wave Georgia informally shares results of our efforts, accomplishments, and learnings with GF4L Partner Site personnel. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?All goals have been accomplished.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
//Goal 1 // In 2020, WWG served 6,200 new customers, with a total of 13,300 transactions--a 31% increase over the previous year. In Year 2, WWG aimed to increase the number of total SNAP recipients participating in the F4L program to 17,556 (a 10% increase over Year 1). WWG exceeded this goal, reaching 24,455 SNAP recipients, 3,084 of whom were new customers. WWG proposed to expand to 15 new partner sites by the end of Year 3, with priority given to brick-and-mortar outlets, mobile markets and farmstands. In Year 1, WWG met its project goal to expand to 15 new partner sites and pledged to expand to 5 additional sites per year in Years 2 and 3, of which at least half would be non-traditional sites (such as farm stands, mobile markets, brick-and-mortar retailers) and sites in communities without Fresh For Less presence. In Year 3, WWG added 5 new F4L partner sites, and 35%met high-priority site criteria. WWG build upon Year 2 success with refresher trainings by conducting them on a more consistent and pre-scheduled basis in Year 3. 43 partner site representatives attended these virtual trainings and provide positive feedback that they increased the ability to operate the program in compliance and successfully at their site. WWG held 4Plant 2 Plate events in Year 3at repeat and new Partner Site locations. Although the events werereceived positively by farm and market partners and the community, turnout and engagement continued to decrease. WWG believes this event initiative was most successful during peak pandemic years, but as community needs and habits have shifted, interest decreased. // Goal 2 // In Year 3, WWG aimed to increase the purchase of fresh, locally grown fruits and vegetables as measured by an increase in the total incentives amount spent on fresh, locally grown fruits and vegetables to $294,820. WWG exceeded its goals andobserved $413,644in Fresh For Less incentive activity, which represents an 120%increase from baseline. // Goal 3 // Stakeholder Advisory Group (SAG):In Year 3, WWG continued to develop the Fresh For Less Stakeholder Advisory Group by meeting monthly, using both in person and virutal formats. WWG responded to the group's priorities by building out subcommittees informed by member priorities and set up an online communication platform using Discord to allow partners to communicate, share resources, and autonomously hold meetings. These developments increased engagement and investment in the group, and in turn, the program. Additionally, WWG opened an application for additional members and received 12, which doubled the size of the group. WWG coordinated its first guest speaker session for the SAG, at which representatives from GA's SFMNP program were invited to present about the WIC and Senior SFMNP programs and how farmers and farmers markets could participate in the program. Benefits to producers/local food outlet operators and program recipients were emphasized. Although this topic was SNAP-adjacent, it increases F4L partners' overall ability to implement and promote food access programs and to reach high need community members who are recipients of multiple food nutrition assistance programs.
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Progress 09/01/22 to 08/31/23
Outputs
Target Audience:The target audiences are: SNAP recipients living in areas in an accessible range from one of our 84 partner sites (farmers markets, farmstands, mobile markets, and brick-and-mortar retailers) throughout the state of Georgia who offer Wholesome Wave Georgia's Georgia Fresh For Less SNAP nutrition incentive program. ? Georgia Fresh For Less Partner Site personnel & vendors selling SNAP-eligible & GF4L incentive-eligible goods Changes/Problems:Community Advisory Coalition - Because WWG staff have a direct relationship with Fresh For Less partner site personnel but not program participants, it has proven to be substantially more difficult to develop and convene the Community Advisory Committee (CAC). Short-term or one-time efforts to gather participant input have been more successful than attempts to create a longer-term engagement like the CAC. WWG believes that SAG partner members, who have direct interactions and meaningful, trusting relationships with program participants, may. WWG will explore this indirect recruitment method in Year 3 as a way to identify CAC members. Plant 2 Plate Events - Despite continued interest and positive feedback from Fresh For Less Partner Sites and program participants, WWG observed a decline in event attendance in Year 2. WWG believes a) partnering with high-capacity, high traffic Partner Sites and 2) employing geographically-targeted and varied promotional methods will increase turnout in Year 3. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?
Nothing Reported
How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?At an annual convening for the GF4L program, Wholesome Wave Georgia informally shares results of our efforts, accomplishments, and learnings with GF4L Partner Site personnel. ? What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?The formation of the Community Advisory Committee (CAC) is the only goal yet to be accomplished. WWG will engage 1) SAG partner site members and 2) WWG's new Northeast Regional Coordinator (planned start date in Spring 2024) to identify and recruit program participants to join the CAC.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Evaluation findings suggest that WWG was effective in increasing awareness and participation in the Fresh For Less (F4L) program and increasing the purchase of fruits and vegetables by SNAP recipients. WWG expanded to fifteen new, diverse partner sites, some of which were in communities where there was previously no F4L presence. While WWG did implement some strategies such as having a community ambassador visit farmers markets, efforts to develop effective strategies to reach underserved populations are ongoing. A summary of each goal, the activities completed, and progress made towards each goal is below. //Goal 1 // In 2020, WWG served 6,200 new customers, with a total of 13,300 transactions--a 31% increase over the previous year. In Year 2, WWG aimed to increase the number of total SNAP recipients participating in the F4L program to 17,556 (a 10% increase over Year 1). WWG exceeded this goal, reaching 27,903 SNAP recipients, 3,299 of whom were new customers. WWG proposed to expand to 15 new partner sites by the end of Year 3, with priority given to brick-and-mortar outlets, mobile markets and farmstands. In Year 1, WWG met its project goal to expand to 15 new partner sites and pledged to expand to 5 additional sites per year in Years 2 and 3, of which at least half would be non-traditional sites (such as farm stands, mobile markets, brick-and-mortar retailers) and sites in communities without Fresh For Less presence. In Year 2, WWG added 14 new F4L partner sites, and over 70% met high-priority site criteria. In addition to the annual partner convening and training for new partners, WWG introduced a new training opportunity called "refresher trainings", which aimed to deliver Fresh For Less program administration information to and increase engagement with Partner Site personnel who directly implement the program and interact with program participants at their site. In addition to an overall aim to boost program activity, WWG believes these trainings increase site-level program competency and compliance. Training sessions were conducted virtually and on a sporadic basis in Year 2, and based on perceived success, will be duplicated in Year 3 on a more consistent, pre-scheduled basis. WWG held 5 Plant 2 Plate events in Year 2 at repeat and new Partner Site locations to mixed success. This is elaborated upon in the challenges section of the report. // Goal 2 // In Year 2, WWG aimed to increase the purchase of fresh, locally grown fruits and vegetables as measured by an increase in the total incentives amount spent on fresh, locally grown fruits and vegetables to $235,854 (10% increase from 2020) by the end of Year 2. WWG exceeded its total project goal in Year 2, and set a goal to increase the amount of incentives spent in Years 2 and 3 by 10%. In Year 2, WWG observed $354,820 in Fresh For Less incentive activity, which represents an 89% increase from baseline but a 7% decrease from Year 1. // Goal 3 // Stakeholder Advisory Group (SAG): In March 2023, WWG held its Network Gathering, the annual convening for partner site personnel, and extended an open invitation for attendees to register to join the Stakeholder Advisory Committee (SAG). In May, WWG hosted the first SAG meeting with its new members. Eight of its current members joined, and they represented a healthy mix of partner site types, levels of experience with the program, and geographic location. The F4L program coordinator and project evaluator facilitated discussion that prompted attendees to identify areas of interest and priority to the group. These included: 1) Communication/Marketing [to program participants], 2) Policy/Advocacy, 3) Internal Policy, 4) Resource Development, 5) Partner Connection, 6) Farmer Support and 7) Training Opportunities. Attendees also expressed an interest to hold 60 minute monthly meetings, which was more frequent than the WWG team expected. In June through August, the SAG met monthly, and in August, the SAG held its first in-person, two hour meeting. Meeting agendas were loosely planned by the WWG team and project evaluator but were characterized by an emergent approach where attendees' interest and priorities guided the meeting's topics, discussion, and direction. Since May, the SAG has had many notable accomplishments, including the development of a customizable, site- and incentive method-specific program flyer for communications and outreach, a customer survey methodology for partner site-administered participant survey collection, and training and programming ideas for the program's broader partner site network. In Year 3, the SAG will continue to convene on a monthly basis, unless renegotiated by its members. The WWG team will shift its primary focus to developing and convening the Community Advisory Committee (CAC), comprising program participants. This is elaborated upon in the challenges section.
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Progress 09/01/21 to 08/31/22
Outputs
Target Audience:The target audiences are: 1) SNAP recipients living in areas in an accessible range from one of our 74 partner sites (farmers markets, farmstands, mobile markets, and brick-and-mortar retailers) throughout the state of Georgia who offer Wholesome Wave Georgia's Georgia Fresh For Less SNAP nutrition incentive program. 2) Georgia Fresh For Less Partner Site personnel & vendors selling SNAP-eligible & GF4L incentive-eligiblegoods Changes/Problems:Due to staff turnover, WWG faced challenges forming and facilitating the Community Advisory Council (CAC) and integrating community members in the design and implementation of the program. WWG did learn from a similar effort funded by another source and will identify ways to incorporate these learnings in Years 2 and 3. The first action taken to overcome this challenge and make progress in Year 2 is assignment ofa GF4L team member to lead development and activities with the CAC and SAG in Years 2 and 3. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?
Nothing Reported
How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?At an annual convening for the GF4L program, Wholesome Wave Georgia informally shares results of our efforts, accomplishments, and learnings with GF4L Partner Site personnel. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Due to staff turnover, WWG faced challenges forming and facilitating the Community Advisory Council (CAC) and integrating community members in the design and implementation of the program. WWG did learn from a similar effort funded by another source and will identify ways to incorporate these learnings in Years 2 and 3. To build on these successes and address the areas for improvement, WWG plans to implement the following: Partner Activities Identify new partner sites that diversify the network and make the program accessible to new communities by conducting concerted and strategic outreach to partners in geographic areas where there is little to no GF4L program access and areas with high SNAP enrollment Provide increased SNAP/EBT technical assistance to prospective partners displaying high interest in the program but low readiness (ex. not SNAP-authorized Retailers) Provide training on marketing tools and tactics, facilitate peer learning around vendor retention and develop new educational resources on the token system Expand current partner site funding opportunities to allow funds to be used to address most commonly cited program challenges Community Engagement Activities Assign a GF4L team member to lead development and activities with the CAC and SAG in Years 2 and 3. Consider opportunities for expansion in community engagement efforts and presence - for example, hiring more community food ambassadors in new regions of the state. Program Implementation Activities Increase program awareness and knowledge by updating WWG's program information and resources including the GF4L Toolkit for partners and the informational video for customers on WWG's website. Prioritize movement towards an e-incentive system and identify a short list of partner site candidates to pilot test the technology Expand on the Plant2Plate program by creating a partner-hosted event format and piloting it with past Plant2Plate partner hosts to test feasibility and ease of implementation
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Evaluation findings suggest that WWG was effective in increasing awareness and participation in the GF4L program and increasing the purchase of fruits and vegetables by SNAP recipients. WWG expanded to fifteen new, diverse partner sites, some of which were in communities where there was previously no GF4L presence. While WWG did implement some strategies such as having a community ambassador visit farmers markets, efforts to develop effective strategies to reach underserved populations are ongoing. A summary of each goal, the activities completed, and progress made towards each goal is below. Goal 1: WWG will increase awareness of and participation in the GF4L program by 40% by the end of Year 3 as measured by the number of new SNAP recipients participating in the program. In 2020, WWG served 6,200 new customers, with a total of 13,300 transactions--a 31% increase over the previous year. In 2021 (Year 1 of the grant), WWG aimed to increase the number of total SNAP recipients participating in the GF4L program to 15,960 (20% increase from 2020). WWG exceeded this goal, reaching 30,303 SNAP recipients, 4,402 of whom were new customers. This considerable increase in the number of customers served likely stems from the efforts funded by this grant and the GUSNIP COVID Relief and Response grant. WWG will continue to increase awareness of and participation in the GF4L program among SNAP beneficiaries by the end of Year 3. Partner Site Expansion WWG proposed to expand to 15 new partner sites by the end of Year 3, with priority given to brick-and-mortar outlets, mobile markets and farm direct stands. In Year 1, WWG expanded to 15 new partner sites, 7 of which were farm direct-sales outlets, such as a farm stands or CSA's, 5 of which were farmers markets, and 3 of which were brick-and-mortar outlets. Seven of the new partner sites were in urban areas, while six were in suburban areas, and two were in a rural area. The majority of the new partner sites were a result of new partnerships (11) while four of the new sites were formed by existing partners. WWG plans to expand to 5 new sites each in Years 2 and 3, half of which will be non-traditional sites such as farm stands, mobile markets, brick-and-mortar retailers, and sites in communities without Georgia Fresh For Less presence. In Year 1, WWG trained new partner sites in program administration and management. Six new partner sites completed evaluations and reported that they gained new knowledge from the training and that the training was valuable. Prior to the training, only two participants were very knowledgeable about SNAP and GF4L and who they serve. After the training all six participants reported being very knowledgeable about the programs. Specifically, participants reported feeling more knowledgeable about how to market and implement GF4L, how the incentives work and what the program requirements are. Some sites did request additional information on marketing and reporting processes and suggested that having reporting templates and individual meetings would help them better understand the requirements. One partner recommended that demonstrating an actual transaction would be helpful while another would like assistance recruiting more farmers. Participant Awareness and Participation To measure awareness of and participation in the program, WWG collected 95 participant surveys from SNAP beneficiaries at farmer's markets held across Georgia between April and July 2022. Surveys collected information on SNAP usage, the use of GF4L to double benefits and purchase fruits and vegetables, fruit and vegetable consumption, food security and satisfaction with the program. Survey respondents were primarily white (53%), non-Hispanic (91%) and female (74%) ages 25-44 (49%). Participant survey results indicate that there is an opportunity to increase the usage of GF4L among SNAP beneficiaries as many have received benefits for more than one year but have not doubled their benefits using GF4L for as long. In fact, some have never doubled their benefits or just started to do so. Nearly one-quarter of respondents were using GF4L to double their benefits for the first time at the time of the survey administration. When asked where they have used GF4L to double their SNAP benefits, the majority of respondents (n=91) reported that they doubled their benefits most often at farmers markets. Overall, 96% of respondents rated their experience doubling their benefits through GF4L as positive (18%) or very positive (79%). Four respondents reported that they have never used SNAP at these locations. Goal 2: WWG will increase the purchase of fruits and vegetables by SNAP recipients by 40% by the end of Year 3 as measured by an increase in the total dollar amount spent on fresh, locally grown fruits and vegetables. GF4L's expansion to additional partner sites, the enhanced core strategies, and the replication of the highly successful Plant2Plate program aimed to increase the amount of fresh, locally grown produce and plant/seed kits purchased by SNAP recipients. As part of their outreach efforts, trained farmers, market managers, and ambassadors focus on increasing SNAP recipients purchases of GusNIP-qualifying fruits and vegetables and Plant2Plate kits at farmers markets and stands. In Year 1, WWG aimed to increase the purchase of fresh, locally grown fruits and vegetables as measured by an increase in the total incentive amount spent on fresh, locally grown fruits and vegetables to $235,854 (10% increase from 2020) by the end of Year 1. WWG exceeded this goal, increasing the total incentive amount spent on fresh, locally grown fruits and vegetables to $384,860 (a 26% increase from baseline). This considerable increase in the number of incentives spent on fresh produce likely stems from the efforts funded by this grant and the GUSNIP COVID Relief and Response grant. WWG will aim to increase the amount of incentives spent in Years 2 and 3 by 10%. Goal 3: WWG will increase its ability to develop effective strategies to reach underserved populations, increase the diversity of partner sites and ensure the cultural appropriateness of services and products provided by coordinating with diverse community members and key stakeholders in all aspects of program design, implementation and evaluation. To inform the design of strategies in Year 1, WWG convened two virtual focus groups in February 2022, one with GF4L participants and one with partner site representatives. A total of seven GF4L participants and 11 partner site representatives attended the focus groups. GF4L participants had attended a Plant2Plate event held at a farmer's market in the fall or spring of 2021 and all but one of the GF4L participants was from the Atlanta area. Five of the participating partner sites were based in the Atlanta area while the remaining sites represented Central and South Georgia. Partner sites included two mobile markets, two CSA farm stands and seven farmers markets. WWG attempted to survey the CAC members to gather feedback on their experience with the CAC and GF4L and recommendations for improvement, but due to staff turnover and a lack of leadership for the CAC, we were unable to gather input from this group. WWG has identified a new staff member to lead the CAC and will administer the survey to collect information in Year 2. WWG will also interview SAG members in Year 2 to gather successes, challenges and lessons learned from this stakeholder group.??
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