USDA Announces Increased Funding for Senior Farmers’ Markets

On July 30, 2008, Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer announced that Congress allocated $21 million in grant awards to 49 state agencies and tribal organizations for the Senior Farmers' Market Nutrition Program in final Fiscal Year 2008 grant awards. Of the $21 million total allocated in the final awards, New York State received $1,906,553.

The $21 million allocation represented $5 million more to this program than the Bush administration previously allocated in FY 2008 grant awards in the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) budget.

The Senior Farmers' Market Nutrition Program (SFMNP) provides low-income seniors with coupons that can be exchanged for locally grown fruits, vegetables, and herbs at farmers' markets, roadside stands, and community supported agriculture programs.

The program targets low-income seniors, defined as individuals who are at least 60 years old and who have household incomes of equal to or less than 185% of the federal poverty income guidelines.