Awards issued prior to january 20, 2025, were funded under previous administrations and may not reflect the priorities and policies of the current administration.** through the double up food bucks…

Awards issued prior to january 20, 2025, were funded under previous administrations and may not reflect the priorities and policies of the current administration.** through the double up food bucks colorado (double up): deepening reach and expanding access project, nourish colorado (nourish CO) proposes to continue to expand access to fresh fruits and vegetables and support communities statewide by: 1) sustaining available incentives for snap shoppers to purchase fresh colorado-grown produce, 2) increasing fruit and vegetable consumption and long-term healthy eating among snap shoppers, 3) deepening reach to more snap shoppers and increase program participation through innovative outreach and promotion that is geographically, linguistically, and culturally relevant and accessible, 4) increasing colorado-grown fruits and vegetables in retail sites offering double up so local farmers are able to sell their produce to more customers and increase their income, and 5) expanding retail partnerships to include a second large grocery chain and being present in at least half of colorado's counties. Needs and challenges. Food costs continue to increasewith inflation and prices have a significant influence on diets and contribute to many of the social inequities of health (darmon & drenowski, 2015). Over 90% of under-resourced coloradans do not eat the recommended servings of produce (cdphe, 2017). Today, 33% of coloradans report food insecurity, with 43% of non-white and latinx coloradans reporting that they struggle to put food on the table (hunger free colorado, 2021). Federal food assistance programs, like the supplemental nutrition assistance program (snap), help to address food insecurity, but do not provide enough assistance for families to purchase the healthy food they need: most snap shoppers do not receive enough money to buy food for an entire month (carlson ET AL, 2021).1 additionally, grocery bills have increased by nearly 11% in the past year (williams, 2022). The cost to eat the USDA recommended servings of fruits and vegetables per day is $2-2.50, which totals nearly $70/month (stuart, 2017). Our current structures and systems do not support the most vulnerable in achieving the benefits of a healthy diet – nor local food systems and small under-represented growers and farmers, whose businesses support resilient food systems and recirculate dollars in local communities (gallo, 2019). Double up has been an important point of increased access to colorado-grown fruits and vegetables since 2016. In a 2021 survey, 80% of snap shoppers reported eating more fruits and vegetables because of double up. Customers have shared, a direct, personal connection with farmers and local food systems positively impacted my mental wellbeing and connection to community (colorado blueprint to end hunger, 2023). The program has documented how critical these dollars are for supporting the sustainability of direct markets and small and beginning farmers in colorado. With sharp increases in food insecurity, supply chain issues, and inflation, a stronger and deeper double up program is needed now more than ever. Capabiliti, ES and assets. Double up includes nearly 77 partners at over 90 double up sites and over 300 partner organizations have helped reach and engage these participants. Nourish CO has built and strengthened significant program assets, including program outreach and coordination through a strong network of partners throughout the state, which assists US in planning, developing, and implementing a program that provides produce incentives in locally tailored, participant-driven ways. As the program has matured, we continue to engage participants and partners through the nourish advisory board (NAB) and annual regionalconversations with shoppers, partners, and farmers. These structured conversations shift marketing, impact program expansion goals, and inform resources. Double up also provides new sales for small farmers and keeps food dollars circulating in local communities. In six years, double up participants have spent over $8 million at participating markets and retailers in snap and double up dollars. Double up has supported small, beginning fruit and vegetable farmer viability through increased revenue from produce sales (participating farmers have reported an increase in revenue by an average of nearly 70% over six years). The network of farmers supported by double up, through strong locally tailored support and program promotion, offers nourish CO the opportunity to further scale and support farm revenue in the state. Addressing needs and building upon assets. Because of the strength of our relationships and our commitment to bring snap shoppers, growers, market managers, county agencies, and state partners together, the double up program is adept at identifying new challenges and addressing them with local solutions. The activities proposed in this project will allow double up to deepen and expand the program to bring IT to more snap shoppers while increasing farmer and market viability throughout the state.