Christie Welch, Farmers Market specialist with The Ohio State University, says the USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service estimates there are 311 farmers’ markets in Ohio. Of those, approximately 100 take SNAP. She said individual farmers can also apply for the designation.
Low-income residents can use their Ohio Direction Card to purchase fresh food from local farmers and vendors, including fruits and vegetables, fresh bread, pastured meats and poultry, eggs, cheese, spices and food-bearing plants for their home gardens.
Springfield has taken the process a step further. EBT recipients get double the money for each EBT swipe, thanks to the generosity of the community. This is the second year that Springfield has accepted SNAP.
“We have anecdotal information that says that our accepting EBT increases traffic at our market,” said Bill Harless, executive director of the Center City Association, the organization that manages market finances. “We are now doing surveys to capture that information.”
In Springfield, area churches and religious organizations contribute funding that allows every dollar spent on an EBT card to be matched with $1 from the community.
“It’s incredible!” says Harless. “They’re not only able to stretch their food dollar, but they’re buying local and the farmers are getting more customers.”
Nutritionist/dietitian Bella Freeman, a teacher at the University of Dayton for more than 20 years, said that most farmers’ markets should carry healthier produce because fruits and vegetables have had a shorter time from the field to the market.
“The loss of nutrients can occur from oxidation, exposure to air, heat, and the opportunity to be contaminated in the transit time between field and table,” she explained.
Before EBT, Welch said, farmers’ markets could accept paper food stamps.
“But when the paper food stamps transitioned to electronic benefit transfer, (EBT), there was no way for markets to accept them because most markets were in parking lots and the terminals had to be wired,” she explains. “You had to have electricity and a telephone.”
New technologies such as a new iPhone app or wireless terminals are allowing the markets to transition once again. Welch says the number accepting Ohio Direction Cards has increased significantly since her department started working with farmers' markets in 2008. At that time, only eight had signed on for EBT.
“I look at this as a win-win-win,” says Welch. “The consumers win because they get access to the locally-produced food that consumers want right now. Locally produced foods taste better, are better value and help recipients participate in the local economy. The farmers get to sell more produce and then the community benefits because in addition to the economic impact that the farmers’ markets have, they also provide social benefits.”
The Shiloh market, at the corner of Main Street and Philadelphia Drive, is open Saturdays and located on the grounds of Shiloh United Church of Christ.
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