Looking to get more local fruits and vegetables on a limited income? With support from Maine Farmland Trust, Rising Tide Community Market in Damariscotta and the Morris Farm Store in Wiscasset just launched Maine Harvest Bucks programs. Through Maine Harvest Bucks, SNAP/EBT shoppers receive bonus local fruits and vegetables, stretching limited benefits much further.

At Rising Tide Community Market, a cooperatively-owned grocer in Damariscotta, customers will receive one $5 voucher to put toward local fruits and veggies for every $10 spent using EBT/SNAP on local food.

“We’re really excited to be a part of this program,” says Rising Tide’s General Manager Michael Walter, “It means a lot to us to support families and farmers in our community by increasing both access to and demand for healthy locally produced food.”

The Morris Farm Store is part of the Morris Farm trust, a nonprofit which began over twenty-years ago to save one of Wiscasset’s historic farms. The stand is staffed by volunteers and stocked with local treats, from produce and dairy to eggs and baked goods.

Approximately four years ago, Morris Farm folded food security - assuring access to quality, nutritious foods for at-risk individuals and families in Maine - into its mission. "It was a natural evolution of what we do," Merry Fossil, co-president of the Morris Farm Trust explains.

SNAP/EBT customers who sign up for the Morris Farm Store’s Harvest Bucks program receive a gift card.  Every time Harvest Bucks shoppers make a purchase with SNAP/EBT, they receive half the value of their purchase back on their gift card, which can be redeemed at any time for local fruits and veggies.

Both programs are funded through a Food Insecurity Nutrition Incentive (FINI) grant that Maine Farmland Trust received through the United States Department of Agriculture, designed to broaden nutrition incentives beyond direct-to-consumer outlets (such as farmers’ markets) and into retail. This incentive program is one of the country’s only retail-based incentive programs across the nation focusing exclusively on local products.

“We’re trying to find new ways to bridge the gap between Maine farmers and consumers,” says Shannon Grimes, who manages the program at Maine Farmland Trust. “Retail locations like co-ops and farm stands are often more accessible to customers who work hours that make visiting the farmers’ market difficult, and by offering local-based incentives, we can increase sales and market opportunities for Maine farms.”

“We’re thrilled to be working with the Morris Farm Store and Rising Tide Community Market on this program,” says Grimes.. “It’s wonderful to have partners who are so invested in supporting the well-being of their community—both low-income consumers and local farms.”

Participating retail locations offering similar incentive program currently include markets like Belfast Co-op, Blue Hill Co-op, Good Tern Co-op, Portland Food Co-op, and The Farm Stand in South Portland and farm aggregators like Lakeside Family Farm, Machias Marketplace, The Pickup, and Unity Food Hub. For more information, visit maineharvestbucks.org/retail or contact Shannon Grimes, Farm Viability Associate at Maine Farmland Trust, shannon@mainefarmlandtrust.org.

Maine Harvest Bucks nutrition incentives (bonus fruits and vegetables for SNAP recipients) are also available at many farmers’ markets, CSAs, food hubs, and farm stands throughout the state. For more information, visit maineharvestbucks.org/.