Double Up Food Bucks Outreach

Iowa ranks 50th in the nation in fruit and vegetable consumption and over 380,000 Iowans rely on federal food assistance.  The Double Up Food Bucks Incentive Program makes it easier for low-income Iowans to eat fresh fruits and vegetables while supporting family farmers and growing local economies by matching each SNAP dollar spent at the Dubuque Farmers’ Market with an additional dollar for  fresh fruits & vegetables.

How it Works

1
Info
Bring your SNAP EBT Card to the Market Money booth on 11th and Iowa before you shop. Market staff are there to help.
2
Buy
Buy any SNAP-eligible foods at the market with your EBT Card dollars.
3
Shop
We’ll match what you spend with FREE Double Up Food Bucks – up to $10, every market day for fresh fruits and vegetables.

Successfully piloted in over 140 communities nationwide, In 2016, Dubuque Farmers’ Market joined 5 other markets and Healthiest State Initiative to pilot the first Iowa DUFB program with technical support from Fair Food Network.

In the first year of the program, over 400 SNAP recipients visited Dubuque Farmers’ market for the first time, taking home over $11,000 in fresh, local food.

Read more about the 2016 Double Up Food Bucks Pilot Program in Dubuque

About the Double Up Food Bucks Outreach and Promotion Project Team

The goal of the Outreach and Promotion Project Team is to increase awareness and support of the program among potential participants and sponsors. This will also include the development of a “kit of parts” that articulates the process and steps Dubuque has gone through for a successful program. This can be used as a transferable tool for communities who seek to utilize the Double Up Bucks program in the future.

Help Spread The Word

Help raise awareness of the DUFB program! Click here to download postcards and flyers to print and share online.

Education & Outreach

Together with partners from Iowa State University Community Design Lab, ISU Human Sciences and Nutrition, and SNAP-Ed, in 2016  an Electronic Toolkit for market managers will be developed including:

  • A video to be used by community agencies to introduce eligible participants to how Double Up Food Bucks works, highlighting the impacts on consumers and farmers and how to find the market money booth.
  • On-site signage to help SNAP participants locate the centralized EBT station (Market Runners for booths)
  • General Double Up Food Bucks way finding signage to support individuals attending market for the first time
  • (March) Infographic on how DUFB to assist with way finding and general questions- what is Double Up Food Bucks.
  • Branding package and templates for state-wide, community, and market promotional materials including postcards and flyers
  • Seasonal produce resources for producers and consumers, including produce buying, storing, and recipe guides. These guides will utilize existing content from the Spend Smart Eat Smart collection, and include additional talking points appropriate to the month/season
  • On-site educational activities for kids and families including recipes, nutrition education and connection to online resources

Resources: 

Teaching Nutrition at the Farmers’ Market – Snap Ed Connection

Farmers Market Tours: A Guide for Nutrition Educators – NC State University. North Carolina Public Health.

Farmers Market Recipes – University of Minnesota

In The News: 

Double Up Food Bucks – Julien’s Journal – July 26, 2006

The Team 

Iowa Healthiest State Initiative

Dubuque Main Street – Dubuque Farmers’ Market Managers

Michaela Freiberger – Program Specialist – michaela@dubuquemainstreet.org

Andie Donnan – On-Site Farmers’ Market – theonenonly1989@yahoo.com

Iowa State University Extension and Outreach 

Carolyn Scherf – Dubuque County Local Food Coordinator – cscherf@iastate.edu

Christine Hradek, MPH – SNAP-Ed Coordinator – hradek@iastate.edu

Courtney Long – Program Coordinator (AUT) – court7@iastate.edu

Mercy Medical Center 

Gwen Hall Driscoll – Community Health – halldrg@mercyhealth.com

Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque

Jason Neises – Heart & Soul Coordinator, Volunteer – Winter Farmers’ Market – jason@dbqfoundation.org

For more information 

Dubuque Farmers Market – www.dubuquefarmersmarket.org

Iowa Healthiest State Initiative – Iowa Double Up Food Bucks Program 

Fair Food Network – www.farifoodnetwork.org

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