The neighborhood of Linda Vista in San Diego almost lost the Market Match program, a federal and state-funded grant program led by the Ecology Center that provides a dollar-for-dollar match on CalFresh/SNAP spending at participating CA farmers’ markets.
Luckily, Love, Linda Vista Inc. stepped up to reopen the Linda Vista market and joined Ecology Center in operating the Market Match program this past year. This has made local produce for five local small farms more affordable while supporting the future of small highly-diversified-crop produce farmers who are the key to ecological sustainable food systems.
Jonathan Widener, President of this farmers’ market, shared what this has meant for his community and local farmers:
When Love, Linda Vista Farmers’ Market joined the Market Match program, the local minority and refugee small farmers at our market doubled their sales of locally grown fresh fruits and vegetables. The number of EBT customers also increased by triple. We are so happy to participate in this vital resource for our community.
At Linda Vista Farmers’ Market from June to December 2023, shoppers have received $8,600 in Market Match incentives, which matched $9,000 of CalFresh spending on an estimated 35,000 servings of CA grown, small farmer-produced, fresh produce.
To read the 2023 Market Match annual statewide impact report, please click here.
Click here to see the Market Match 2023 statewide impact report
