Stateside: Why the DNR okayed wolf killings; citizen activists on PEAS; expanding food assistance

November 25, 2019

Source: Michigan Radio
Author: Stateside Staff

Program that stretches SNAP dollars for fresh produce gets funding to expand statewide

Listen starting at 8:22

Stateside’s conversation with Oran Hesterman

Double Up Food Bucks is a program that makes SNAP benefits go twice as far when spent on fresh fruits and vegetables. It originated in Michigan as an initiative from the Fair Food Network and is now a model used across the country. The organization recently received $12.5 million in federal funding to help expand the food assistance program statewide. Oran Hesterman is the president and CEO of Fair Food Network and created the Double Up Food Bucks program in 2009. He talked about the effectiveness of the current program, and what the boost in federal funding will mean for its expansion.

First published in Stateside on November 25, 2019.