Area Agency on Aging 8 :: Senior Farmers Market

Senior Farmers Market

The 2011 Senior Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program is closed.
We will be making 2012 Senior Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program applications available for download from our website in April 2012.
Please check back at this site in April.

FARMERS: Click Here to Learn more about the March Farmers Market Conference
Seniors who meet the eligibility guidelines, will soon be receiving some welcome relief from rising food budgets. The Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program (SFMNP) provides income-eligible senior citizens with special coupons worth $50 to buy produce.

The Seniors Farmers Market Nutrition Program (SFMNP) is a program sponsored by USDA and The Ohio Department of Aging in which grants are awarded to provide coupons to low-income seniors. Individuals are eligible for the Senior Farmers’ Market if they are 60 + and have an annual household income of $20,036 or less as a single person ($26,955 or less for a household of two).
Participants receive $50 worth of coupons; grant funding is limited and coupons are available on a first-come, first-serve basis. Each eligible household will receive a total of ten $5 coupons: five $5 coupons valid from May 1- July 31 and five $5 coupons valid from Aug. 1- Oct. 31. Coupons may only be redeemed by authorized participating farmers who sell produce at farmers’ markets, or roadside stands. The program will end Oct. 31, 2011. These SFMNP coupons may be exchanged for eligible foods from authorized farmers. Only fresh, locally grown fruits, herbs and vegetables are eligible to be purchased with the coupons.

Local farmers are also needed to participate in the Market program. Farmers may sell seasonal items as long as the farmer grows at least 51 percent of the produce sold and does not purchase produce from a wholesaler (one who does not grow the produce). A farmer may buy the rest of the produce —49 percent of what is sold from other local farmers.
For more details on what products are included in the program or to become an authorized SFMNP farmer, contact the Area Agency on Aging 8 (AAA8) at 1-800-331-2644 or visit www.areaagency8.org. This institution is an equal opportunity provider.
The USDA prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, gender, age or disability.