Garfield County dedicates $20,000 to bring back local farmers’ market nutrition program 

Garfield County has dedicated $20,000 to restarting the local Women, Infants and Children Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program this summer.

The program operates under the WIC Special Supplemental Nutrition Program. To qualify, participants must earn less than 185% of the federal poverty level — about $28,952 annually or less for one person, $39,172 for a two-person family and $49,302 for three, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Along with the income restriction, Colorado families must include either a pregnant woman, a mother breastfeeding a baby that’s less than a year old, a new mom who had a baby or was pregnant in the past six months, or children less than five years of age to be eligible.

Any caregiver can sign up on behalf of a child. WIC programs also do not ask for information about citizenship or visa status, according to WIC Colorado.

Eligible farmers’ market participants are issued coupons in addition to their regular WIC benefits. They can use the coupons to buy food from state-approved farmers, roadside stands or farmers’ markets.

In 1992, Congress established the Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program to support farmers’ markets while providing fresh, locally-grown vegetables and fruits to WIC participants.

Garfield County participated locally for over a decade, beginning with a $1,500 pilot program in 2009 that grew to a $20,000 service by 2015. The county continued funding the program until 2021, when the WIC Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program was adopted state-wide.

“It was convenient and it was local, the farmers loved it because they were able to participate in a program that created relationships with local families,” Garfield County Public Health Nutrition Programs Manager Christine Dolan told the county commissioners in a meeting on April 21. “It was a good all-around program, and it worked pretty well.”

In October 2024, the Colorado program was discontinued. Low voucher redemption rates, combined with a high administrative workload, were the driving factors behind the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment’s decision to shut down the program, according to program co-leader Nourish Colorado.

“What we were hearing from (the state) was that they didn’t get a lot of money to administer the program, they got more food dollars,” Dolan told the Post Independent on Thursday. “In order to get those vouchers, or food dollars, sent to people and in the hands of people and to get the vendors engaged, they didn’t have the staff to make that happen real efficiently and broadly.”

“There were just a lot of barriers that we don’t have locally that prohibited people from getting their vouchers in a timely manner and from getting the farmers enrolled and trained,” she later added.

The local program, however, is a little more personalized.

“We know people, we have more control, we are able to develop those relationships,” Dolan said. “From 2009 to 2021, we were running this program and some of the vendors we dealt with were the same through all those years. So you get to know people, they understand the system, and if there’s a problem, they’ll call you.”

Community farmers’ markets in five municipalities — Glenwood Springs, Carbondale, New Castle, Rifle and Parachute — have expressed interest in participating in the program this summer, according to Dolan.

At the end of May, families enrolled in the county’s WIC farmers’ market will begin receiving paper vouchers for a total of $30 per family. The vouchers can be used to purchase eligible produce at participating markets. In the fall, vendors or market managers submit the vouchers for reimbursement. Past voucher redemption rates in Garfield County have been as high as 75%, Dolan said.

“People love to be able to buy local produce. If you think about how you might feel about a particular fruit or vegetable this summer, for some people, it’s a real highlight — peach season, or apples at the end of the summer or something like that,” Dolan told the Post Independent on Thursday. “Not being able to include that in your budget is hard.

“So participating in the market to buy produce and as a night out… it’s just a good overall feeling,” she added. “And the growers or the farmers are really receptive to talking to the families and engaging with the kids.”

Around 750 Garfield County families, or 1,400 people, are eligible for the program, according to a Tuesday news release from the county.

“This falls into our goal of having a safety net for low-income families and food supply,” Commissioner Tom Jankovsky said on April 21 while deliberating restarting the program. “I think that’s one of our goals, is that everybody in Garfield County can have access to food, and this is healthier food, it’s not candy, which is good.”

Commissioners unanimously approved allocating up to $20,000 from the county’s general fund to bring back the local WIC Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program during the board of county commissioners meeting on April 21.

“To me, it’s a win-win situation — we help people who need to be helped…plus we’re helping our local farmers,” Commissioner Mike Samson said.

Visit coloradowic.gov for more information on women, infant and children supplemental nutrition programs available throughout the state.