Council Funding of EBT Machines shows huge gains at the City’s Greenmarkets

CITY HALL – City Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn, Council on the Environment of NYC (CENYC) Executive Director Marcel Van Ooyen, New York City Coalition Against Hunger (NYCCAH) Executive Director Joel Berg, CENYC EBT Coordinator Alexis Stevens, and local farmers Ana Angel and Martin Rodriguez today released a report highlighting a dramatic increase in the use of food stamps at the city’s Greenmarkets.

This year food stamp purchases at Greenmarkets have more than doubled, growing from $100,772 in 2008 to $226,469 in 2009. In September alone, food stamp usage went from $25,415 in 2008 to an incredible $62,816 in 2009. In addition, over 80% of total food stamp dollars were used to purchase fresh fruits and vegetables.

Families that qualify for federal food stamp aid often live in neighborhoods with limited access to the nutritious food they need to support a healthy lifestyle. In 2000, when food stamps transitioned from paper coupons to the paperless Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) card, the problem grew more severe because many farmers’ markets were unable to accept food stamps.

In 2006, Speaker Quinn and the City Council began to provide funding for EBT scanners, signage, community outreach and a dedicated staff member to operate the machines at four Greenmarkets around the City. The program proved an immediate success, most notably at the Poe Park Greenmarket in the Bronx where the amount of food stamps being used grew from almost nothing to over $500 a day. As a result the Council increased funding for the program, now in its fourth year, and EBT machines are now available at 23 Greenmarkets citywide. Poe park still leads the city in EBT sales, having taken in $4,500 in food stamps in a single day this year.

“The success of our program is proof that all New Yorkers will purchase healthy and nutritious foods when given the opportunity,” said Speaker Christine C. Quinn. “And it couldn’t come at a more critical time, when more and more families are having trouble making ends meet. Our Greenmarket EBT funding is a win-win, because it provides nutritious foods to the new Yorkers who need it most and keeps those food dollars in the hands of local farmers.”

“We are extremely grateful to Speaker Quinn and the City Council for making CENYC’s food stamp in the farmers market project a continued success,” said Marcel Van Ooyen, Executive Director of Council on the Environment of NYC. “The Council’s support has enabled us to expand EBT from 17 Greenmarkets in 2008 to 23 in 2009, and our sales as a result have more than doubled. In these difficult economic times, it is vital to continue improving the health of communities facing disproportionate rates of diet-related illness by enhancing the access and affordability of fresh, locally-produced foods and we congratulate the Speaker for her ongoing dedication to these efforts.”

Using funding from the City Council and other sources, CENYC was able to expand EBT scanners to an additional 6 Greenmarkets this year. In addition, they were able to finance a major marketing initiative urging New Yorkers to use food stamps at Greenmarkets, with ads on subways and buses, and in several citywide newspapers.

“We are so grateful that Speaker Quinn understands so completely that hunger and obesity are often flip sides of the same malnutrition coin. She understands that when nutritious food is either physically unavailable or economically unaffordable for struggling New Yorkers, they obviously can’t eat it,” said Joel Berg, Executive Director of the New York City Coalition Against Hunger. “More importantly, beyond just understanding the problem, the Speaker has allocated concrete resources to fixing it. This vital effort — helping fight hunger, reduce obesity, boost the local economy, and aid small regional farmers all at the same time — is government at its best.”

“EBT machines at farmers markets are wonderful because they have increased our business,” said Ana Angel of Angel Family Farm in Orange County, NY, a New Farmer Development Project (NFDP) farmer. “We have more customers, and shoppers have more money to spend on our vegetables.” NFDP, which also receives Council funding, is a program that identifies, trains, educates and supports immigrants with agricultural experience helping them establish small farms in the region and become local producers.

“I want to applaud Speaker Quinn for her leadership on this issue,” said Deputy Majority Leader Leroy Comrie. “During this economic recession, more families are desperately looking for assistance and have tough choices to make – pay the mortgage or eat. Additionally, the lack of supermarkets and grocery stores in my Southeast Queens district make it even more difficult for residents to find sources of good nutrition. That is why I am proud to support Speaker Quinn’s Green Market/EBT initiative.”

“Too often we expect families living in low-income communities to make nutritious choices without ensuring they have the resources to do so,” said Jilly Stephens, Executive Director of City Harvest. “At a time when more New Yorkers may not know where their next meal is coming from, this program has made fresh, locally grown food an option.”

The Council’s efforts have been complemented by a number of Bllomberg Administration programs aimed at reducing hunger in New York City. In 2007, the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOH) piloted the EBT incentive component of its Health Bucks program. Through this program, EBT users receive a $2 Health Bucks coupon for every $5 they spend at participating farmers’ markets – a 40% increase in purchasing power.

When the pilot project proved to be overwhelmingly popular, the NYC Human Resources Administration (HRA) provided over $200,000 to allow DOH to expand the program dramatically and distribute over 100,000 Health Bucks per year at 44 farmers markets. In addition, the HRA has made significant progress in improving the accessibility of the Food Stamp Program. As of October 2009, more than 1,600,000 New Yorkers are enrolled in the Food Stamp Program, an increase of 101% since 2002.

“It is exciting to see the Health Bucks incentive promoting such dramatic growth of EBT spending at farmers’ markets. This is a clear indication that there is demand for healthy foods in low-income communities,” said the City’s Food Policy Coordinator Ben Thomases. “Along with Green Carts and the Healthy Bodegas initiative, ensuring that EBT cards are accepted at Greenmarkets is a great way to guarantee that all New Yorkers have access to fresh, nourishing foods in their own communities.”

“Among HRA’s chief priorities is supporting working New Yorkers who are having trouble making ends meet,” said HRA Commissioner Robert Doar. “The Food Stamp Program, which helps New Yorkers afford food for their families, has proven to be a key element of this strategy. We are pleased that more green markets are accepting food stamps and that more families are taking advantage of the nutritious options available to them.”

Greenmarkets has organized and managed open-air farmers markets in New York City since 1976, promoting regional agriculture and ensuring a continuing supply of fresh, local produce for New Yorkers. Greenmarket supports farmers and preserves farmland for the future by providing regional small family farmers with opportunities to sell their fruits, vegetables and other farm products to New Yorkers.