Fulton Street Farmers Market goes wireless to accept food stamps, WIC benefits - Grand Rapids, MI - News Article Locations on Waymarking.com

GRAND RAPIDS, MI – Next to the tomatoes on the stand she's manning today at the Fulton Street Farmers Market, Linda Bylsma placed an iPhone and a sign: "We accept SNAP benefits." To demonstrate how customers can pay with their electronic food stamps, she held up a card reader and attached it to the phone.

"I can just slip this in, swipe the card and she's paid for," said Bylsma, whose son runs Real Food Farm in Gaines Township.

Using the same technology, Bylsma also now can accept payments through Kent County's WIC program. The Fulton Street market and more than 20 other markets are piloting a new wireless transaction device, the first in the country to do so.

Whereas WIC recipients previously could use their electronic cash value benefits to buy fresh produce only at grocery stores, they now can swipe their Bridge Card at the local farm markets. That will enable market vendors to get a share of WIC program benefits, which last year in Kent County amounted to almost $2 million.

With support from the Michigan Department of Community Health, the Fulton Street market has distributed iPods and card readers to vendors, said Melissa Harrington, market manager. Vendors also can use the card readers with their iPhones.

“They all have them,” she said.

Kevin Concannon, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food and Nutrition Under Secretary, visited the Fulton Street market this morning to see a demonstration of the pilot and meet with local food agency leaders on efforts to increase access to fresh fruits and vegetables for low-income people. The USDA has awarded $167,000 in grants to Michigan for wireless technology at farmers markets, and “the idea behind it is to enable farmers markets or farm stands to process those (government) benefits,” he said.

Concannon, who will join an MLive chat at 2:30 p.m. today, said Michigan leads the region in the number of SNAP-authorized farm markets and the amount of SNAP money spent at farmers markets. For example, SNAP money spent at the Fulton street market has grown from $17,000 in 2009 to $130,000 last year.

Concannon stopped at Bylsma’s stand during his tour.

“We’re always pleased to see these signs. It reinforces what we’re doing,” he said. “Our goal is to encourage more recipients (of government food benefits) to access fresh fruits and vegetables. We’re significantly deficient (as a society) in fruits and vegetables.”

Type of publication: Internet Only When was the article reported?: 06/20/2012 Publication: M Live Article Url: [Web Link] Is Registration Required?: no How widespread was the article reported?: local News Category: Society/People

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