Every Monday evening on the corner of Central and Grand avenues in Pacific Grove, something special happens. Shoppers strolling past piles of seasonal fresh vegetables, bouquets of boutique flowers, and heaps of handcrafted treasures set the scene for the city’s weekly farmers market.
Alisal farmers market
It’s a familiar picture for many, but for families with a limited income and tight grocery budget, it’s far more than just another farmers market. It’s a place where money spent on fruits and vegetables goes twice as far, and fresh, nourishing food becomes more affordable and accessible.
That’s thanks to Market Match, a program that’s part of every farmers market run by Everyone’s Harvest, the local nonprofit that operates the farmers markets in Pacific Grove, Seaside, Marina, Salinas’ Alisal neighborhood, and at Natividad Medical Center and Salinas Valley Health.
Market Match matches every dollar CalFresh shoppers spend on fruits and vegetables up to $30 per day. Spend $30 on produce, get $60 worth. And that matters now more than ever, as the most recent federal budget drastically cut CalFresh funding, significantly reducing monthly benefits for families who need it most.
“People aren’t just being handed a box of food,” says Hester Parker, executive director of Everyone’s Harvest. “They’re choosing what works best for their family. They shop directly with farmers and decide how to spend those dollars for themselves in a way that preserves choice and dignity.”
An investment powered by partnership
A bounty of produce on a table at the farmers market
The Market Match program is made possible by grants from Ecology Center and Montage Health's Community Benefit program. Fifteen dollars of every match are funded by Ecology Center, and Montage Health funds the additional $15. And those dollars make a measurable difference.
According to data collected by Everyone’s Harvest, Market Match participants eat about three-quarters of a cup more vegetables and half a cup more fruit per day. The program is also shown to reduce food insecurity by 20 percent.
"Our support of Everyone’s Harvest and Market Match is an investment that pays in fewer cases of diabetes, obesity, high blood pressure, and other conditions linked to poor nutrition,” says Mia McKernan, Montage Health’s community health and wellness manager. “Market Match takes preventive medicine beyond the clinic and into communities, meeting people where they are."
Good for families, good for farmers
The impact doesn’t stop with shoppers. Over the past decade, Everyone’s Harvest has distributed about $3.5 million in nutrition incentives, all redeemed directly with local farmers. Market Match alone has generated nearly $900,000 in additional income for local growers.
And when those dollars stay in the community, they circulate through the local economy. United States Department of Agriculture data shows that about $1.79 is generated in local economic activity for every dollar spent through CalFresh.
A recipe for well-being
Marina farmers market
Market Match shows how something as simple as access to affordable healthy food can ripple outward, strengthening individual health, supporting local farmers, and nourishing the whole community. When people are empowered to make healthy choices, healthier communities naturally follow.
