Farm Direct Incentives Guide

SNAP INCENTIVES FOR CSA: Troubleshooting Guide

SNAP regulations were not written with CSAs in mind. This guide is intended to be a starting point for identifying some common roadblocks and solutions for farmers and support organizations administering CSA incentive programs, such as navigating the upfront payment at the beginning of the season, in-person payment processing across multiple pickup locations, and using a point of sale system.

This guide was informed by two national surveys about SNAP Incentives for CSAs conducted in 2022 and 2023, along with 12 learning cohort sessions with CSA farmers and farmer support organizations. This guide is divided into the areas of greatest technical assistance needs as defined by the entities administering these incentive programs:  “Customer Recruitment”,  “Administering SNAP on a CSA Schedule”, “Logistics and Administration” and “Funding Incentive Programs for CSA.”

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