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market-farming - Re: [Market-farming] FMNP coupons, state and market rules

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  • From: road's end farm <organic101 AT linkny.com>
  • To: Market Farming <market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [Market-farming] FMNP coupons, state and market rules
  • Date: Wed, 4 Jan 2006 10:09:07 -0500


On Jan 4, 2006, at 7:40 AM, logrock wrote:

In Georgia, WIC recipients are given five $6 checks to use at the
farmer's market over the season. Our WIC coordinator is a superior
person who set up two new markets in the area, coordinated around
locations & times of other local markets. However, we did not find the
experience to be an positive one overall, for the same reason previously
stated: resellers.

The rule allowing a vendor to resell up to 50% of what they bring to
market is a disaster. It cannot be enforced, nor do the people in charge
have any desire to enforce it. They want a "farmer's market". After
seeing resellers sway in to this comfortable indoor market, and plop
their grocery purchased items on the table, walk away with hundreds of
dollars in checks on a weekly basis, while legitimate growers packed up
their homegrown produce and carried it back home, we decided that it
wasn't worth it. Understandably, some of the legitimate farmers ended
up participating in the reselling just to get a share of the $6 checks,
which had to be spent in its entirety at a single vendor's stand. There
was also a communication barrier due to approximately 80 percent of the
recipients being Hispanic, and somewhere around 1/2 of those were unable
to speak English. And even though it was eventually worked out, every
vendor had a problem with their bank accepting the checks because they
were all made out to "Authorized Farmers", and then stamped with an
issued WIC stamp...which meant nothing to the bank.

Rules apparently vary a great deal state by state. New York's seem to work better. For one thing, in New York the FMNP coupons are only good on local produce. (The market gets some leeway in defining "local".)

Our market allows reselling up to 40%; but all resold items (produce or not, we include crafts, baked goods, etc.) must also come from our local area; and we define "local" as our county and immediately adjacent counties. So this lets you bring some of your neighbor's stuff, without filling up the market with out-of-area produce; and of course you can't resell miscellaneous grocery produce, because it's unlikely to come from within the permitted area. (It's a small market, which undoubtedly simplifies enforcement of this; we know each other, and the produce available in the area, well enough that active enforcement is rarely necessary.) The market is run by the members; and we have a good strong consensus that local-only is what we want. This is a strong enough selling point with many people in the area that I think we attract a lot more customers with this policy than we lose. I did briefly go to a market in another town that was run by people who didn't care about this and let the resellers mostly take over. I quit going there.

FMNP coupons in NY are also in $2 units, which makes it much easier for a customer to spend a coupon all at one stand; $6 of coupons can be spread around to up to 3 stands if the customer wants to. NY has agreed with one widespread bank to take the coupons even from farmers with no account there; that bank isn't actually around here, but I don't know anybody who's had problems getting their local bank to take them. My bank doesn't like to take them for cash but takes them with no problem for deposit; this isn't a difficulty for me.

I haven't had any problem with the customers themselves, either. Some of them just want to use up their coupons in a hurry on something familiar to them and easy to cook; but some cash customers only want something familiar and easy, also. (Some days, though not all, so do I.) Some of the younger ones really want to get some fresh produce into their kids, knowing that it's important; some of the older ones are really happy to be able to get food of the quality and flavor they remember growing, when they had gardens (many of our older customers have had to move into apartments in town.) It helps for both FMNP customers and cash customers to have recipes available. (In the other direction, unhelpful regulations, NY has gotten really fussy about offering prepared samples unless you have a certified kitchen and for many things ice or refrigeration at the market. I usually now just sample things that can be eaten whole and raw, such as berries, cherry tomatoes, etc.)

-- Rivka; Finger Lakes NY, Zone 5 mostly
Fresh-market organic produce, small scale



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