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A program that gives seniors vouchers for the farmers markets will see fewer recipients this season
By: Amanda Pirani
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ATHENS, Ohio (WOUB/Report for America) — Farmers markets around the region will see fewer senior vouchers this season after the expiration of American Rescue Plan Act funds (ARPA).
The Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program provides $50 in vouchers for senior residents to spend throughout the farmers market season.
They’re funded with a combination of federal, state and local funds.
With the expiration of ARPA, the Ohio Department of Aging said the voucher program will return to its “original” levels of funding, which presumably means funding levels prior to the passage of the law in 2021.
In southeast Ohio, the program is administered under the Buckeye Hills Regional Council according to Public Information Officer Emma Yeager.
“ARPA funds gave us a huge boost of funding all around,” she said. “We knew it was going to expire someday and that day has come to fruition.”
Yeager said there are waitlists for the program in every county Buckeye Hills covers.
Meigs County Farmers Market Treasurer and Grant Writer Stephanie Rife said the cut came out to be 65% statewide.
On average, she’s seen around 322 participants in the voucher program in Meigs County. But this year, they were only able to sign up 156.
The River City Famer’s Market in Marietta said they are seeing a similar drop in numbers this season. WOUB reached out to the Athens Farmers Market to confirm whether they were also seeing fewer voucher recipients.
In an email response, a spokesperson said it “does not have anything to do with the program other than qualified vendors accepting them from customers.”
In Meigs, Rife said she’s seen the impacts of the program first-hand over the last seven years.
“Most of us know seniors are on fixed incomes and everything’s going up,” Rife said. “And when you’re out in the field … you get to meet these seniors and hear what productive citizens they were, the differences they made in our community. It’s just sad when a program like that is cut.”
She said the organization applied for grants in anticipation of the cuts but didn’t expect them to be so expansive.
Rife applied for another grant this week and plans to do what she can to expand the number of vouchers available in the future.
Applications to participate in the program have closed for the season, but more information can be found here.