Double Your Freshness
new program helps needy families get more for their money at the downtown farmers market
Tom Giffey, photos by Kelsey Smith
Over the past decade, nothing has come to represent the rising tide of the local food movement in the Chippewa Valley than the Downtown Eau Claire Farmers Market. On Saturday mornings (and, to a lesser extent on Wednesdays and Thursdays), the pavilion at Phoenix Park is a bustling hive of activity, jam-packed with vendors peddling produce and customers eagerly buying it up. The addition of art and music, the enjoyment of people-watching, and the beautiful natural setting make the market a must-do for countless Chippewa Vallians each week.
Yet because of economic hardship, shopping for fresh, healthful produce at the market isn’t an option for many people, nor is partaking in the culture that’s grown up around the market.
To address this problem, in 2012 the Downtown Eau Claire Farmers Market partnered with UW Extension to create a token program for FoodShare recipients. Instead of getting food stamps, these individuals now receive government benefits on QUEST cards, which operate much like debit cards. While the card technology is helpful at grocery stores, the cards previously weren’t usable at the farmers market, where vendors typically accept cash only. As part of the token program, the farmers market obtained a card reader, allowing QUEST users to swipe their cards and receive tokens that could be spent with vendors just like cash. (Forgot to bring cash to the market? No worries: Anyone can use a regular debit card to buy tokens for a $1 fee.)
Over the past three summers, the token program has continued to grow, from $4,000 in tokens purchased in 2012 to $15,000 last year. “I think it’s been extremely successful,” says market manager Deidra Barrickman. This year, it undoubtedly will be bigger than ever because of the creation of the new Market Match Program. With Market Match, QUEST card users will have their token purchases doubled up to $10 each week. In other words, $10 from a QUEST card can be easily converted into $20 of fresh produce.
Kate Beaton, a recent UW-Eau Claire graduate, helped created the Market Match program during an internship last year after researching similar programs elsewhere. Now she’s overseeing the program through UW Extension as an AmeriCorps VISTA worker. While the original token program helped bring economically disadvantaged people to the farmers market, “With the Market Match, they have an even greater ability to be included,” Beaton says.
And such inclusion is much needed: According to UW Extension, an estimated one in eight Eau Claire County residents experience “food hardship” (sometimes not having enough money to buy the food their families need) while about one in five county residents receives FoodShare benefits.
Not only does the Market Match program give QUEST card holders an incentive to purchase healthy food, but it also helps local growers and increases the sustainability of the local food system, Beaton says. “I think it’s been incredibly well-received,” Beaton says of the Market Match program. “I can’t believe how many people already know about it. … I think it’s a great way to make a better community down here at the farmers market.”
While tokens can only be purchased at the Saturday morning market, they can be used to buy produce on Wednesdays and Thursdays, too.
Market Match has a $21,500 budget, which funding coming from North Barstow/Medical Business Improvement District, JAMF Software, private donors, and grants. Beaton expects funding to run out before the end of the farmers market season, so additional donations are welcome.
To learn more or to make a donation, contact Nancy Coffey at the Eau Claire County UW Extension Office at (715) 839-4712.