America spends over $1.1 trillion annually on treating diet-related chronic diseases

The Indiana Department of Health (IDOH) received a $2.4M Project Grant award on September 15, 2025, under the Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program (CFDA 10.331), administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture. The award funds the expansion and enhancement of Double Up Indiana (DUIN), a statewide SNAP-matching program designed to increase fruit and vegetable consumption among low-income populations. Through the grant period ending September 14, 2028, IDOH will scale programming to provide nutrition incentives to Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) beneficiaries at farmers' markets, farm stands, and grocery stores across Indiana. The program operates through a $1-for-$1 matching model wherein SNAP participants swipe their Hoosier Works Electronic Benefit Transfer cards to receive tokens redeemable for fresh produce, with matched amounts of up to $20 at farmers' markets and $10-$20 in retail settings.

IDOH will implement innovative approaches to improve redemption processes and expand DUIN to additional food retailers, thereby increasing accessibility for program participants. The initiative addresses the state's documented gap in fruit and vegetable consumption among both adults and children by removing cost as a primary barrier to healthier food access. Additionally, the program strengthens Indiana's local food economy by supporting specialty crop growers and reducing reliance on imported produce, while contributing to the national effort to reduce the $1.1 trillion annual cost of treating diet-related chronic diseases.

Poor diets are the leading cause of these chronic conditions. In indiana, both adults and children often do not meet the fruit and vegetable intake recommendations. Participants in the supplemental nutrition assistance program (snap) consume even fewer fruits and vegetables than the national average. Surveys consistently show that cost is the primary barrier to accessing healthierfoods. Additionally, the number of specialty crop growers has declined over the years, negatively impacting local food economies, as a larger share of fruits and vegetables is now imported. Double up indiana aims to reverse these trends by promoting healthier eating habits while strengthening indiana's local food economies. The indiana department of health (idoh) and the division of nutrition and physical activity (dnpa) GUS schumacher nutrition incentive program (gusnip) - nutrition incentive large-scale project is to expand and enhance statewide snap-matching program, double up indiana (duin). Duin offers a $1-for-$1 match to purchase fresh fruits and vegetables at direct marketing sites, such as farmers' markets, as well as farm stands and grocery stores through an electronic benefit, coupon, or 50% discount model. The idoh/dnpa is working on innovative and systematic approaches to improve redemption processes, aiming to expand duin to more food retailers and make the program more accessible to participants. Currently, at participating locations, snap beneficiaries swipe their hoosier works electronic benefit transfer card to receive snap tokens, which can be used to purchase eligible food items. They then receive a matched amount of up to $20 at farmers' markets and between $10 to $20 in retail settings, allowing them to buy fresh fruits, vegetables, herbs, and mushrooms directly from vendors or at the point-of-sale. The goal of this project is to scale programming to provide healthier food options to hoosiers on snap while supporting local economies and communities. The idoh/dnpa will collaborate with internal state agencies and external organizations with expected outcomes toenhance communication efforts, raise awareness of the program, and increase participation. Additionally, envisions building the infrastructure and implementation processes necessary to create long-term solutions for financial stability and sustainability for duin with the anticipated benefits that more hoosiers on snap are purchasing and consuming more fruits and vegetables and a stronger local food system.