Montclair Farmers Market Celebrates 10 Years of Good Food Bucks!

Montclair Farmers Market Photo Credit: Red Root Marketing

This year marks the 10 year anniversary of Montclair Farmers’ Market (MFM) being a Good Food Bucks partner. For the last 10 years they have supported shoppers who use SNAP and FMNP by doubling their purchasing power when they shop for fresh produce at the market! This means if someone uses FMNP or SNAP at Montclair Farmers Market and spends $10 of their benefits,they are actually getting $20 to spend on fresh produce.The Good Food Bucks program at Montclair Farmers’ Market is a triple win for customers, farmers, and the community. By offering the Good Food Bucks program, shoppers who have SNAP and FMNP can double their dollars for more fruits and vegetables, leading to more income for the market’s 6 farm vendors. The extra benefits these customers receive for fruits and vegetables also provides them the ability to spend more at Montclair Farmers’ Market’s 32 unique vendors at the market. This relationship between Montclair Farmers’ Market, the community, and New Jersey farmers is an example of successful efforts to strengthen our local food system by making local food more accessible and improving the profits of local farmers.   

Montclair Farmers Market Photo Credit : Market Staff

Montclair Farmers’ Market, which has been in operation since 1993, has continued to support local food access, sustainability, local business  and community resilience for the last 32 years. Gray Russell, one of the market's founders, wanted to start a market in the Montclair area because he saw a need to bring more commerce to Montclair and to support the budding local food movement that had been growing across the US. At the time there were only three farmers markets in North Jersey. While so much food is grown in New Jersey, a few decades ago it was much harder to have access to these foods. It was even harder to find a space that brought farmers directly to customers. So, with this idea in mind, Gray and other community members formed a coalition to support the market and run it. After its first year of successful operation the market operations were handed over to the town of Montclair, and the market has been run by them ever since. Gray is still very much involved with the market and can be found there most Saturdays. Without Gray and the support of the town, Montclair Farmers’ Market may not have become one of the most successful and well known farmers markets in New Jersey! 

Photo Credit: Red Root Marketing

Montclair Farmers’ Market aims to be a welcoming place for all people. By accepting benefits programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and the Farmers Market Nutrition Program (FMNP) for families with WIC and older adults living on fixed incomes, Montclair Farmers’ Market expands access to how families can shop at their market. With Good Food Bucks, customers with SNAP, WIC FMNP, or Senior FMNP receive Double Value Coupons that allow them to purchase twice as many fruits and vegetables when shopping at the market. These discounts help families stretch their budget and increase their access to local and fresh NJ produce. 

Montclair Farmers’ Market understands that farmers markets should be for everyone, and they work everyday to make local food more accessible to their community. In addition to SNAP, Good Food Bucks, and FMNP, the market also runs a local emergency food assistance program through which they have provided thousands of pounds of local produce to community organizations such as Toni’s Kitchen and The Salvation Army. By donating the excess food from the market, it ensures that more meals are going to people who need it, rather than to waste. 

Montclair Farmers’ Market started running the Good Food Bucks program in 2016 in order to support local food access and increase the affordability of fresh produce for their customers. Since then, the market has seen a huge increase in Good Food Bucks redemptions per year. In 2016, over $12,000 worth of Good Food Bucks were distributed when customers used FMNP and SNAP at the market, with a redemption rate of 95%. The Good Food Bucks program has grown exponentially since then. In 2024, over $41,000 worth of Good Food Bucks were distributed using FMNP and SNAP at the market, with a redemption rate of 85%. The program has grown so much in the last 10 years, and more people than ever are benefiting from the Good Food Bucks program. 

The Good Food Bucks FMNP doubling program is supported by Partners for Health Foundation.  Partners for Health Foundation supports initiatives in 15 communities in northern New Jersey that align with their mission to create health equity in communities through food access, health access, affordable housing, and transportation access. When all of these services function well and equitably, communities thrive. When older adults and families with WIC use FMNP at Montclair Farmers’ Market, they can get local NJ produce for prices lower than at most grocery stores. Thank you to Partners for Health Foundation for supporting City Green and the Montclair Farmers’ Market in making local healthy food more affordable for Good Food Bucks, and for their continued commitment to increasing food accessibility. 

Throughout the summer market season FMNP doubling at the market is extremely high. Demand from the community continues to grow each year, and the Montclair Farmers’ Market Board of Trustees generously provides additional FMNP-doubling funds for the program to would only be accessible for a few months each year.   The Montclair Farmers’ Market understands the importance of food access at their market and by continuing the program when other funding sources run out, it shows how much they understand the value of this service to the community. 

Pictured Here: Lisa Martin Director of Food Access at City Green and Paul Pinto Montclair Farmers Market Manager Photo Credit: Red Root Marketing

If you shop at the market  and want to use SNAP, simply visit one of the friendly market managers or volunteers at the Market Info tent and let them know you’ll be paying with SNAP or FMNP. They’ll give you vouchers matching the amount you spent that can be redeemed for fresh fruits and vegetables anywhere at the market throughout the season! By participating in Good Food Bucks you’ll not only get more affordable food, but you’ll be supporting New Jersey farmers in your community.

City Green is so grateful for our continued partnership with Montclair Farmers’ Market. Being able to have the Good Food Bucks program run at such a large market means that so many families are able to benefit from the discount. City Green and the Good Food Bucks program are excited to continue working with Montclair Farmers’ Market for many years to come, continuing to support food access and strengthen NJ’s food system. 

You can visit Montclair Farmers’ Market every Saturday between 8-2 from June to November and 9-1 from December to May at the Walnut Street Train Station in Montclair, NJ. 

For more information about Montclair Farmers’ Market about the market and vendors check out their instagram page as well!

This work is supported by the Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program, project award no. 2024-70415-43708, from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and should not be construed to represent any official USDA or U.S. Government determination or policy. The Good Food Bucks program is also supported by Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, The Tepper Foundation, New Jersey Food Security Initiative, and Albertsons Companies Foundation.