Good food feeds progress.
Field & Fork Network is committed to transforming the food ystem in New York State, ensuring that it works for everyone–producers, consumers, and communities alike. Explore our work and join us in building a stronger, more equitable food system—get involved today!
Plate by Plate
Our Flagship Food Access Program
At Field & Fork Network, our food access work is rooted in the belief that everyone deserves access to fresh, healthy food, regardless of income. Through the Double Up Food Bucks NY program, we empower SNAP shoppers to stretch their food budgets by matching every dollar spent on fresh fruits and vegetables with additional dollars to purchase more produce. By making nutritious food more affordable, we not only support healthier eating habits but also contribute to local economies by directing more spending toward New York’s farmers and markets.
Expanding Food Access with Double Up Food Bucks NY
Double Up Food Bucks NY is a nutrition incentive program that increases food access by connecting New York farmers, grocers, and residents who use the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance e Program (SNAP). The program helps SNAP shoppers purchase more local fruits and vegetables through a dollar-for-dollar match, up to $20 a day, with an emphasis on New York grown produce.
Our work goes beyond transactions—it’s about building lasting connections between communities and healthy food sources. We partner with farmers markets, grocery stores, and community organizations across the state to expand access to the Double Up program, tailoring it to meet the needs of each location. With innovative technology, some partners are able to reduce sign-ups and barriers to participation for shoppers, making it easier to access the program. Our goal is to foster a more equitable food system, where everyone has the opportunity to nourish their families with fresh, local food.
The impact this program is having on the lives of our customers, our community partners, and our farmers is truly a win-win-win for our communities. Meet a few of those whose lives we’ve touched and hear directly from them how powerful Double Up Food Bucks NY is.
Become a part of our growing movement focused on food access and equity across New York State!
Partner by Partner
Expanding Access to Healthy Food Through Nutrition Incentives and Produce Prescription Programs
At Field & Fork Network, we are committed to making healthy, local food more accessible to all New Yorkers. In partnership with the New York State Department of Health, we conducted an assessment to understand how Nutrition Incentive and Produce Prescription programs are making an impact across the state. Our focus included nine counties in Western New York, helping us identify opportunities to improve program reach, simplify access, and better serve families who rely on these resources.
Food as Medicine: Advancing Health Through a State Physical Activity and Nutrition Project
At Field & Fork Network, we are committed to making healthy, local food more accessible to all New Yorkers. As part of the State Physical Activity and Nutrition (SPAN) project—a CDC-funded initiative running from 2023 to 2028 aimed at reducing health disparities related to physical activity, obesity, and nutrition—we partnered with the New York State Department of Health to assess the impact of Nutrition Incentive (NI) and Produce Prescription (PRx) programs across the state. Our focus included nine counties in Western New York, helping us identify opportunities to improve program reach, simplify access, and better serve families who rely on these resources.
Nutrition Incentive programs provide extra dollars to buy fruits, vegetables, and local foods through SNAP matches, vouchers, tokens, and other discounts. Across the nine counties, 126 markets, grocery stores, farm stands, and mobile markets currently offer these benefits. Produce Prescription programs take this work a step further by helping people manage chronic health conditions with fresh food, offering vouchers redeemable at farmers markets and stores.
While these programs have already made a meaningful impact, we are working to overcome challenges related to funding, outreach, and balancing urban and rural access. With initiatives like the Medicaid 1115 Waiver and stronger healthcare partnerships, we aim to grow and sustain these programs, ensuring that fresh, healthy food reaches even more New Yorkers.
As key findings and white papers are published throughout this project, there will be opportunities for partners and community members to engage with the work. For updates, sign up for our email newsletters!
Our work strengthens community by strengthening the food system.
Neighbor by Neighbor
Empowering Communities Through Markets and Local Food Systems
Field & Fork Network is driving positive change in Niagara Falls through two key initiatives: the revitalization of the Niagara Falls City Market and our commitment to the Niagara Falls Local Food Action Plan. By managing the historic City Market, we’ve enhanced access to fresh, local food with programs like Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Double Up Food Bucks, while also supporting new and existing vendors through special events and community engagement. Through our role in the Local Food Action Plan, we’ve empowered residents to take ownership of their food systems, informed strategies for healthier neighborhoods, and fostered deeper community connections.
Our Work in Niagara Falls
Revitalizing a Historic Market to Strengthen Community Connections and Expand Food Access
The Niagara Falls City Market plays a key role in the local food system, identified as a priority in the Niagara Falls Local Food Action Plan. In August 2022, Field & Fork Network took over market operations with a vision to strengthen community connections, improve access to fresh produce, and support the city’s broader development efforts along Pine Avenue.
Since stepping in, we’ve introduced programs like SNAP and Double Up Food Bucks to make fresh, local food more accessible to low-income shoppers. We’ve also enhanced vendor opportunities through marketing support and special events like the Artisan Market, breathing new life into this historic gathering space that has been a community fixture for over 100 years. With the support of a USDA Farmers Market Promotion Program grant awarded in 2022, we are focused on expanding the market, recruiting new vendors, making capital improvements, and hosting community events that foster deeper connections between residents, farmers, and local businesses.
Supporting Resident-Led Change through Local Food Initiatives like the Niagara Falls Local Food Action Plan
Where we live plays a powerful role in shaping our health. The neighborhoods where we work, learn, play, and grow directly impact well-being. As a member of the Creating a Healthier Niagara Falls Collaborative and its Healthy Foods Healthy People work group, Field & Fork Network has helped inform key strategies to make neighborhoods healthier, more vibrant places to live. By providing guidance and resources, we empowered residents to take ownership of their local food systems and lead efforts to improve them.
Our involvement with initiatives like the Niagara Falls Local Food Action Plan, the revitalization of the Niagara Falls City Market, and healthy retail programs focused on shifting conversations toward food advocacy and civic engagement. By laying the foundation, we passed the work back to residents and community partners, ensuring they remain at the center of driving lasting change. When communities are connected and empowered, they build the capacity to overcome barriers to fresh food access and thrive through economic and social challenges.
Youth by Youth
Educating the Next Generation of Food System Leaders
Since 2021, Field & Fork Network has offered a variety of youth programming including Urban Seeds – a two-track curriculum that provides young people the tools to understanding the food system and their role within it; and Food Pathways, a youth development program that introduces students to careers in the local food system. In partnership with Niagara Falls High School, we’ve engaged students in hands-on learning, professional development and immersive experiences with businesses and stakeholders in the food system. We are updating our programs, incorporating educator and student feedback, to be a more inclusive youth curriculum that is trauma-informed, emphasizes diversity, equity, and inclusion, and offers greater accessibility across multiple learning formats. Stay tuned for more ways we’re expanding opportunities for young people to engage, learn and grow within the food system.
We're empowering the next generation by educating them about their local food systems.
From 2021 to 2023, Field & Fork Network piloted Food Pathways, a youth development and training program designed to expose young people to careers in the local food system. Launched as a priority of the Niagara Falls Local Food Action Plan, the program aimed to bridge gaps between workforce needs and food system employers in Niagara County.
In partnership with Niagara Falls High School, the program provided students with hands-on professional development through activities such as personal branding, social intelligence, and team building, as well as immersive field experiences with local food businesses. Each year, 15 seniors received a $500 scholarship to participate in the 14-week program, preparing them to pursue meaningful careers that support the sustainability of the local food system.
As we look to the future, we are sunsetting our Food Pathways program to focus on creating a more comprehensive youth curriculum. Thew new approach will be trauma-informed, emphasize diversity, equity and inclusion, and offer greater accessibility for both educators and students through multiple learning formats. Our goal is to expand youth engagement and provide even more opportunities for young people to explore and grow within the food system, regardless of where they learn or connect.
For more information or to connect with our team about integrating youth programming into your initiatives, contact us a info@fieldandforknetwork.com.
Become a food systems ally.
Donate
Support our programs by donating to advance our food systems initiatives.
Get Connected
Sign up for our email updates to stay informed and engaged.