Families dependent on Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits may be feeling the pinch since emergency allotments put in place during the pandemic ended on March 1. The end to emergency funding means a loss of $95 to more than $400 a month in SNAP grocery benefits offered during the pandemic. The move is expected to impact about 1.6 million Texas households, as Texas sees about a 35% drop in federal funding for SNAP benefits. Fortunately, Double Up Food Bucks can provide some relief to Tarrant County residents, making it easier to put fresh fruits and vegetables on the table.
Double Up Food Bucks is a national program funded locally by North Texas Healthy Communities (NTHC), an outreach arm of Texas Health Resources that implements Blue Zones Project in Fort Worth. The program allows SNAP recipients to stretch their dollars on the purchase of fresh fruits and vegetables at participating farmers markets and grocery stores. Double Up Food Bucks is currently offered at Cowtown Farmers Market in White Settlement, and three Fort Worth-area G.E. Foodland grocery stores: Elrod’s Cost Plus at 1524 NW 25th St.; Foodland Markets at 1212 S. Ayers Ave.; and Foodland Markets at 3320 Mansfield Hwy. in Forest Hill.
How Double Up Food Bucks Works
Double Up Food Bucks makes healthier options more affordable at the neighborhood level, where people are accustomed to shopping. SNAP recipients receive 50% off fresh produce at participating grocery stores, up to $10 a day, simply by using their Lone Star Card and mentioning Double Up Food Bucks to the cashier. At Cowtown Farmers Market, SNAP recipients purchase Double Up tokens at the Market Info Booth, receiving $1 in tokens for every $1 purchased, up to $30 a day. Tokens can then be redeemed for fresh fruits and vegetables from produce vendors.
“Between the reduction of SNAP benefits and the rising cost of groceries, this is a challenging time for some families — and research tells us that fresh fruits and vegetables are important to our overall health and well-being,” said Matt Dufrene, North Texas Healthy Communities vice president. “Double Up Food Bucks means more families have access to those health benefits and can put healthy food on the table while freeing up income for other basic needs.”
With the reduction in SNAP benefits, Double Up Food Bucks usage at participating grocery stores is expected to increase. Fortunately, NTHC will be expanding the program later this year to even more farmers markets and farm stands across DFW, thanks to a grant from the Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program (GusNIP). More Double Up locations will be announced as they come on board.
Learn more at doubleuptexas.org.