Ever heard of the Farmers Market Nutrition Program (FMNP), WIC, or SNAP? What about the SFC and how they are contributing in a major way to food access in our fair city? Well, this week we want to give these forces of good in our community a little highlight.

Downtown Farmers Market. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

FMNP + WIC

Founded by Congress in 1992, the FMNP expands WIC participants’ access to fresh, local, and seasonal fruits and veggies while simultaneously supporting local farmers by increasing sales at farmers markets. What is WIC, you might wonder? “The WIC Program [or the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children] provides supplemental foods, health care referrals and nutrition education at no cost to low-income pregnant, breastfeeding and non-breastfeeding post-partum women, and to infants and children up to 5 years of age, who are found to be at nutritional risk” according to the USDA website. The grants that fund the FMNP are distributed from the federal government and divvied up from state to state. This program runs every year from April to October, and almost 2 million WIC participants receive FMNP benefits. Around 14 million dollars in revenue are redeemed by farmers nationwide annually! Talk about an incredible program and food justice being served!

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

SNAP

Another food access miracle is the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Formerly known as the Food Stamp Program, this is one of the largest initiatives currently at work in the federal government to address food access to low to no-income people in the US. As the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities aptly states: “SNAP provides important nutritional support for low-wage working families, low-income seniors, and people with disabilities living on fixed incomes. Close to 70 percent of SNAP participants are in families with children; nearly a third are in households with seniors or people with disabilities. After unemployment insurance, it is the most responsive federal program providing additional assistance during economic downturns.” The federal government provides all of the money for this initiative, while individual states operate and administrate the program. Here in Texas, folks receive a monthly stipend meant for specifically for nutritious food. This sum is made available through the Lone Star card, which works like a debit card and is used at markets for groceries.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

How SFC is Majorly Contributing to Austin’s Food Access

One of the Sustainable Food Center's core values is justice and “believ[ing] that the community’s inherent power and leadership is the foundation for a truly equitable and sustainable food system.” Thus, it’s no surprise that they are spearheading the implementation of above initiatives in our community and championing food access for all of the Austin population. Because of the SFC, we accept WIC and SNAP payments at all our SFC and Texas Farmers Markets stands (think: Cedar Park, Mueller, Sunset Valley, and Downtown)! All of the WIC and SNAP transactions we receive, the SFC processes. They take care of all the administrative paperwork and let us focus on growing food! According to SFC data, FMNP brought in $63,000 in fruit and vegetable sales last year alone. Talk about food access and safeguarding our local farms! We really are so lucky to have the SFC ensuring that EVERYONE has access to local, healthy, and fresh food in Austin.

Click here to check out more initiatives that the SFC is heading to make sure that folks get the most out of their FMNP benefits.