Skip to Content.
Sympa Menu

market-farming - Re: [Market-farming] Food stamps, WIC program and credit card acceptance

market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org

Subject: Market Farming

List archive

Chronological Thread  
  • From: "Mike Emers" <rosie-ck AT mosquitonet.com>
  • To: "'Market Farming'" <market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Food stamps, WIC program and credit card acceptance
  • Date: Tue, 3 Jan 2006 12:10:22 -0900

WIC vouchers represent about 10%-15% of our farmers' market sales, an
important part of our income. We grow things especially for our WIC
customers and price things so that it will be easy for them to purchase.
In our state we don't need to verify them, we just accept them like a $5
bill (of course we can't give change). I think that the WIC customer is
very important to our market - it brings in people who would not
necessarily go to a farmers market and although many just use their
coupons and leave, a good many others spend more at market beyond the
coupon purchase.

Mike Emers
Rosie Creek Farm
Ester, Alaska

-----Original Message-----
From: market-farming-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org
[mailto:market-farming-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org] On Behalf Of Patrick
Mulkey
Sent: Tuesday, January 03, 2006 11:29 AM
To: Market Farming
Subject: [Market-farming] Food stamps, WIC program and credit card
acceptance

Our market in Carrboro, NC is currently studying if we should start
accepting food stamps cards, WIC cards and credit cards.

Currently several vendors accept WIC coupons which are like checks that
the
vendors can cash or depoist at banks.

Another hurdle is that our market is very much open air with limited
power
available and not available to all vendors.

The proposal is that there would be some kind of central data point
where a
vendor could go to verify a customer's food stamp card or credit card.
How
this would be paid for is unknown at this time. Some of suggestions made
is
local and state governments picking some if not all the cost to begin
with.

Vendors may participate if they like. I use to accept WIC coupons but it

provided me with very little additional income.

My question to the group is have any of you accepted payments other
than
cash and check why or why not and what pitfalls or benefits have you
experienced?

Thank you,
Patrick Mulkey

_______________________________________________
Market-farming mailing list
Market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org
http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/market-farming

Get the list FAQ at: http://www.marketfarming.net/mflistfaq.htm






Archive powered by MHonArc 2.6.24.

Top of Page