USDA awards SNAP fruit and vegetable incentives

Eating a healthful diet may be its own reward, but the U.S. Department of Agriculture is upping the ante.

More than 30 grants were awarded by the USDA totaling nearly $17 million to help Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program participants increase fruit and vegetable purchases.

The program is operated by the USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture, with farm bill-authorized funding from the Food Insecurity Nutrition Incentive (FINI) program, according to a news release.

The full list of grant recipients is at http://bit.ly/2wBhsQ6 at the USDA website.

“These grants help provide low-income families with the resources they need to consume more nutritious food,” Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said in the news release. “This builds on the successes of health-related incentives, with many of the projects being conducted at farmers markets.”

At the same time, Perdue said in the release, the program is helping to strengthen local and regional food systems.

Since 2014, the National Institute of Food and Agriculture has awarded more than $65 million through the FINI program. One notable previously funded project, which received more money this year, is the Fair Food Network of Ann Arbor, Mich. That program’s “Double Up Food Bucks” program became a national model for other healthy food incentives that are now active in nearly 20 states, according to the release.

First posted on The Packer August 7, 2017