Informing Public Policy

For Immediate Release—May 14, 2013

Double Up Food Bucks program boosts local economy and healthy food access

New report confirms healthy incentives programs are good for farmers and low-income consumers

Statement of Support

Today, Tuesday, May 14, the Altarum Institute Health Policy Forum convenes a national roundtable to explore innovative approaches that encourage healthy food choices for low-income families and individuals in the federally funded Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly known as food stamps).

Join Altarum, Grantmakers in Health, and the American Society for Nutrition at their latest roundtable, "Encouraging Healthy Food Choices in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) - Examining Financial and Other Incentives to Change Purchasing Patterns,” on Tuesday, May 14.  Registration site for both in-person and Web participants.

Tri-Caucus briefing focuses on collaboration by Fair Food Network, Food Research and Action Center (FRAC), National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC), and PolicyLink.

At FFN, we engage with stakeholders from many walks of life: low-income consumers who receive SNAP benefits, health care providers who serve low-income communities, community organizers, national thought leaders, and policymakers. Sustainable agriculture organizations, the antihunger community, the produce lobby, the consumer lobby, religious communities, and public health and health care organizations are critical allies in Farm Bill policy and politics.

No place has more serious food systems challenges than Detroit; more than half of Detroit residents lack access to healthy, fresh food and consequently many suffer from food-related health issues.

Yet, Detroit is also an epicenter of the good food movement with hundreds of neighborhood and school gardens, farmers’ markets and farm stands, and energetic urban farmers sprouting up around the city. Our new video about Fair Food Network’s Strengthening Detroit Voices project illustrates both the challenges facing Detroit citizens and the innovative solutions they are developing to provide healthy food for their community.

Recently, Fair Food Network sponsored a virtual gathering, a “Detroit Telephone Town Hall,” that brought together 7,500 Detroiters–people who are concerned about accessing healthy food for their families. Fifty-eight percent of people polled during the Town Hall said that the biggest issue they face in feeding their family healthy food is the cost.

According to the 2011 U. S. Census, more than 31 percent of Detroit families reported an income below the poverty level and more than 34 percent receive government food assistance. More than half a million residents live in neighborhoods where they must travel twice as far to reach a grocery store as a convenience store, gas station or liquor store, where healthy, fresh food is difficult to find. As a result, they are frequently compelled to purchase low-quality, highly-processed products, often at higher prices than in the suburbs.

Fair Food Network understands the depth of the food problem in Detroit and believes that only through the collective, authentic voices of Detroiters can citizens effect the changes in public policy that will make a difference in their quality of life.

The cherry blossoms are in bloom again in Washington, DC, signaling the start of…the Congressional farm bill discussion season! Today, Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Representative Chellie Pingree (D-ME) introduced the Farms, Food and Jobs Act of 2013 in the Senate and the House.

On December 5, 2012, I had the opportunity to participate in a Telephone Town Hall Meeting held by Fair Food Network’s Strengthening Detroit Voices project. Fair Food Network (FFN) is a nationally-recognized nonprofit organization that “works at the intersection of food systems, sustainability, and social equity to guarantee access to health, fresh, and sustainably-grown food for all, particularly in underserved communities.”

Let’s start with what (you think) you know: You have been bombarded with negative press about Detroit: lack of access to healthy foods, violence in the city, poverty, and blight. There is no question that there is work to be done, but our goal at Fair Food Network is to ensure that the strengths of the city and its residents are recognized and utilized in order to create a bright future for Detroit.

Fair Food Network is excited to present a new video featuring the work of our Strengthening Detroit Voices initiative, a partnership that empowers the Detroit community to advocate for policies at the local, state, and national level to grow a healthy, sustainable food system for all.