It’s exciting to know that the Atlas Farm Store was able to fill the gap for their SNAP and HIP (Healthy Incentives Program) customers through fundraising and that they’re now officially a HIP vendor bringing fresh and healthy local produce to eaters of limited means (“Community rallies to support Atlas Farm Store while awaiting HIP authorization,” March 25). HIP is a great program!
I just wanted to note that this arrangement with a retail store, while unusual, is not “unprecedented,” as the Reporter reported. Quabbin Harvest Food Co-op in Orange has had a similar arrangement with the state since HIP was launched in 2017. We currently serve close to 100 households a year with biweekly fruit or vegetable shares for which recipients are reimbursed through their SNAP accounts.
We often assume that the most direct farm-to-consumer route is the best one. But in fact there are many benefits from the kind of small-scale aggregation that retailers like the Atlas Farm Store and Quabbin Harvest can offer, from longer opening hours (good for customers) to taking some of the distribution burden off farmers, who usually have more than enough to do. It’s exciting to be helping to build out the retail infrastructure for HIP and supporting both food security and local food-growing capacity in our region.
Cathy Stanton, chairwoman of Quabbin Harvest Food Co-op board of directors
Orange