Fresh Produce Becoming More Accessible

Part of a series

Throughout the greater Washington metropolitan region, progressive community members, local farmers, government grants and food banks are making fresh produce more accessible than ever before to those depending on food aid and federal nutrition assistance programs.

In Virginia, the Arlington Food Assistance Center started a "Plot Against Hunger" campaign, which calls on local gardeners, farmers and schools to donate part of what they grow to the food bank, and last year collected over 175,000 pounds of produce. In Gaithersburg, the Manna Food Center started a farm-to-food bank program with a dozen local farms that in two years brought 100,000 pounds of produce from local fields to Manna's food aid boxes. In Takoma Park, the Crossroads and Takoma Park farmers markets pioneered programs that allow recipients of federal nutrition assistance to spend their Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) dollars at farmers markets.

But making fresh foods available is only half the battle. For many, not knowing how to cook produce is as much a roadblock to a nutritious diet as being able to access to it in the first place.

"There are things in our food boxes that I've never seen, and sometimes I have no idea what they are," said a recipient at the Manna Food Center who preferred not to be named. "I don't want the food to go to waste, so I pass it on to my vegetarian friends. I don't know what else to do with this stuff."

At the Takoma Park Farmers Market, local Glenville Hollow farmer Cindy Yingling is pushing for more educational outreach in the surrounding community.

"A lot of people don't know what to do, and it's a real barrier to healthy eating," said Yingling, who manages the finances and paperwork that make it possible for the market to accept federal nutrition assistance dollars. "This winter, my suggestion at our annual meeting is going to be that we need to work on educating others about how to cook fresh stuff. As farmers, we want to support the lower-income groups in our community, but it's complicated." 

Getting people to participate in the program has been another issue. The Takoma Park market estimates that four to 10 families a week are using SNAP benefits. The nearby Crossroads market has been much more successful at getting community engagement, largely to a grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture that funded an intense outreach program.

While it's hopeful that the number of farmers markets accepting federal benefits is growing nationwide, participation is proving difficult to get. But those invested in market's SNAP programs strongly believe that they are worthwhile.

"Programs like ours give these folks access to a level of service they wouldn't have otherwise. They can ask me directly where something comes from, or what it is. I think that's one of the reasons why it's so important for those with lower incomes to be able to shop here. If you go to a grocery store, maybe there'll be recipe cards, but unless you’re at a specialty grocery stores, which are extremely expensive, there’s no one to answer questions about how to prepare this stuff," Yingling said.