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Nutrition Incentives
Supporting access to healthy, affordable food.
In the United States, food is one of the largest household expenses, following housing and transportation. Families with limited incomes often spend a significant portion of their budget on food, making it challenging to afford fresh fruits and vegetables.
SNAP (formerly known as food stamps) is the nation’s most important tool for helping families put food on the table. At $80 billion per year, it represents the largest federal investment in our food and farming systems. Our work supporting nutrition incentives helps families stretch their food dollars while also supporting local farmers and businesses, ensuring more communities have access to fresh, affordable food.
Double Up Food Bucks
Our Double Up Food Bucks program harnesses the power of SNAP to help families bring home more healthy food. When SNAP shoppers go to a participating store or farmers market, they receive a dollar-for-dollar match on the purchase of fresh fruits and vegetables. The program works in a variety of settings—from community farmers markets and farm stands to local grocery stores—nationwide.
Since 2009, the program has been adopted by partners around the country, improving healthy food access from coast to coast; it continues to show the benefits of nutrition incentives for local farmers, retailers, and the people who need their services.
Interested in learning more about Double Up Food Bucks?
The Double Up Model
The Double Up program is a triple win: more healthy food for families, better business for farmers, and a boost for local economies. Fair Food Network support has helped to implement Double Up as a uniform, consistent brand in a variety of locations — from community farmers markets to local grocery stores — in 25 states.
A Win for Families, Farmers, and the Local Food Economy
Good For Families
Double Up offers families more ways to purchase the fruits and vegetables they need and want.
Good For Farmers
Double Up boosts business for local farmers, helping them pursue their purpose as well as their profitability.
Good For Local Economies
Double Up ignites local economies by keeping more food dollars in the community.
Michigan Roots
Double Up was seeded more than a decade ago in our home state of Michigan. What began as a pilot program in collaboration with five farmers markets in Detroit has grown into a national model for nutrition incentives. The program is now a statewide success, available in more than 230 locations across the state.
Double Up is generating big wins for Michigan farmers: in 2024, independent grocers purchased $6.6 million in Michigan produce and more than 1,000 farmers participated in the program at farmers markets. Learn more about the program's impact on Michigan communities.
By the Numbers
Estimated SNAP households reached in 2024.
M
Estimated pounds of produce bought with Double Up & SNAP benefits since 2009.
$M
Total produce bought through Double Up & SNAP benefits since 2009.
The Latest From Double Up
Check out the latest impact results and stories from our Double Up Food Bucks partners across the country.
Nutrition Incentive Hub
The Nutrition Incentive Hub, created by the GusNIP Training,Technical Assistance, Evaluation, and Information Center in 2019, provides training, technical assistance, reporting, and evaluation support to strengthen nutrition incentive and produce prescription projects, as they work to increase the purchase of fruits and vegetables by project participants.
Led by the Center for Nutrition and Health Impact in partnership with Fair Food Network and a coalition of partners, the Hub is funded by the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture.
Our Work With the Nutrition Incentive Hub
We lead technical assistance and innovation on behalf of the Hub, offering nutrition incentive and produce prescription practitioners with 1-on-1 planning and implementation support, peer learning opportunities through communities of practice and learning cohorts, as well as capacity-building grants, free of charge. We work with hundreds of current and potential GusNIP-funded projects across states, U.S. territories, and tribal nations to evaluate, innovate, and scale their work to reach more people.
We are joined by a coalition of partners in our work, including National Grocers Association Foundation, Farmers Market Coalition, Michigan Farmers Market Association, The Food Trust, and DAISA Enterprises, LLC.
By the Numbers
$M
Total local economic impact of GusNIP-funded nutrition incentive programs in surrounding communities between September 1, 2022 and August 31, 2023.
$M
Nutrition incentives redeemed at local food retail outlets during this time.
Number of grocery stores, farmers markets, and health clinics that offered nutrition incentives during this time.
The Latest From the Nutrition Incentive Hub
Dig into the Nutrition Incentive Hub Impact Report for the most recent evaluation of the national program, including the finding that participants eat more fruits and vegetables than the average American.
Advocating for Fruit and Vegetable Incentives
Policy advocacy is a key strategy to our approach creating immediate community impact and long-term systems change. In 2018, we proudly served as a platform for local and national organizations championing the expansion of the USDA’s Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentives Program (GusNIP), ensuring that GusNIP has permanent, mandatory funding, including $250 million over the next five years.
Fast forward to the next Farm Bill, Fair Food Network and our partners in the Alliance for National Nutrition Incentives (ANNI) are advocating to grow support for GusNIP and realize its full potential for supporting families, farmers, and local economies.
Get in Touch
Interested in learning more about Nutrition Incentives and Double Up Food Bucks?
Contact us at media@fairfoodnetwork.org.
