Double Up Food Bucks NY Pilots with Tops Friendly Markets
Field & Fork Network is proud to announce an exciting partnership with Tops Friendly Markets to pilot their Double Up Food Bucks NY program at two Tops locations: 1275 Jefferson Ave in Buffalo, NY, and the 1000 Portage Road in Niagara Falls, NY. This innovative program aims to increase access to fresh produce and make it more affordable for individuals with Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits by providing a $1 for $1 match on produce purchases (up to $5 per day).
Tops Friendly Markets is the largest grocery store chain to participate in the Double Up Food Bucks program to date. The pilot was made possible by a partnership with the National Grocers Association Foundation and shopper intelligence leader Catalina, which delivers personalized content and incentives in real-time to shoppers based on their purchases tied to their EBT card through Tops’ in-store media network. The automated solution allows Double Up to distribute the incentive more equitably and removes the registration process, which can be a significant barrier to program participation.
“Working with Tops Friendly Markets to pilot the Double Up Food Bucks program has been a priority for our organization for several years. We worked with Tops to identify the store locations with the highest SNAP usage,” said Lisa French, Co-Founder & Executive Director Field & Fork Network. “Our goal is to enhance food access, promote healthier eating habits, and support local farmers in the process. By providing a dollar-for-dollar match on produce purchases, we aim to empower individuals and families to make nutritious choices without financial constraints.”
Food insecurity has been an ongoing challenge faced by many communities, including those in Buffalo and Niagara Falls. The lack of access to fresh, nutritious food options has adverse effects on the overall health and well-being of individuals and families. The Double Up Food Bucks NY program seeks to address this issue by empowering SNAP recipients to purchase more fruits and vegetables without straining their budgets.
“The Double Up Food Bucks program perfectly aligns with Tops’ mission of eradicating hunger and improving the lives of children. What better way to provide for our community than ensuring that community members have an easier way to affordably access fresh fruits and vegetables all while being rewarded for their healthier habits,” said Jeff Cady, vice president produce and floral, Tops Friendly Markets.
How the Double Up Food Bucks NY Program Works:
- SNAP recipients simply shop for fresh produce at the participating Tops Friendly Markets locations.
- When they use their EBT card to pay for eligible produce items, the Double Up Food Bucks program automatically matches their purchase dollar-for-dollar, up to $5 dollars.
- A coupon is printed at check-out that can be used on a future visit, encouraging repeated engagement with the program.
- No registration or additional steps are necessary, making the process seamless and removing any potential barriers to participation.
Catalina’s Chief Revenue Officer Wes Bean added, “We are delighted to support the great work of our partners at Tops Friendly Markets and the Double Up Food Bucks NY program to help combat food insecurity by leveraging our technology to deliver incentives that enable shoppers to get twice as many fresh fruits and vegetables into their baskets.”
“The National Grocers Association Foundation Technical Assistance Center is proud to play a role in bringing Double Up Food Bucks to several Tops Friendly Markets in historically underserved areas of Upstate New York,” said Josh Anderegg, project director for the NGA Foundation TA Center, which helped to facilitate the partnership between the Field & Fork Network, Tops Friendly Markets and Catalina. “With engaged partners like the ones who came together here, nutrition incentives can help increase food access and security to those who need it most. No one is immune to hunger, and healthy, fresh food has tremendous impact on communities where options are limited.”
Join us in celebrating the launch of the Double Up Food Bucks NY program at Tops Friendly Markets and witness how this simple but powerful incentive is making fresh produce more accessible to SNAP recipients. Together, we can create a healthier and more equitable food future for our communities.
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About Double Up Food Bucks NY:
The Double Up Food Bucks program is a statewide program, administered by Field & Fork Network, that provides a dollar-for-dollar match on Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) purchases, up to $20 per day that can be used to purchase local fresh fruits and vegetables. The program is a free resource for anyone receiving SNAP benefits, that increases purchasing power by doubling their benefits. Double Up Food Bucks has contributed to over $10 million in healthy food sales with $2.6 million going directly to NY farmers. The program is available at over 230+ locations, across 32 counties, and has served over 100,000 SNAP Shoppers. For more information visit: www.doubleupnys.com Social media: @DoubleUpNYS
About Tops Friendly Markets:
Based in Williamsville, NY, Tops Markets currently operates 149 grocery stores in New York, Pennsylvania, and Vermont, including five that are run by franchisees. As the largest private, for-profit employer in Western New York, with over 13,000 associates, the company is dedicated to providing sustainably sourced, high-quality products, while helping its communities flourish via support for programs that eradicate hunger and disease, educate youth and reduce environmental waste and energy consumption. For more information, visit www.topsmarkets.com.
About Catalina
Catalina is a leader in shopper intelligence and highly targeted in-store, TV and digital media that personalizes the shopper journey. Powered by the world’s richest real-time shopper database, Catalina helps retailers, CPG brands and agencies optimize every stage of media planning, execution and measurement to deliver $6.1 billion in consumer value annually. Catalina has no higher priority than ensuring the privacy and security of the data entrusted to the company and maintaining consumer trust. Catalina has operations in the United States, Costa Rica, and Europe. To learn more, visit www.catalina.com.