The Corner at Deb's Store on Florida Ave. in Jacksonville's Eastside is one of five outlets in Duval County that accepts Fresh Access Bucks. The Fresh Access Bucks program allows people who utilize food assistance programs to expand their benefits to purchase produce. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
Published on July 31, 2026 at 2:42 pm
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A food assistance program that helps Floridians purchase fruits and vegetables will be paused, due to a funding gap.
Fresh Access Bucks is a program that allowed people who used the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program to extend their money at select farmers markets and retailers.
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Someone who spends $20 from their SNAP fund balance would have $40 to spend on SNAP-eligible foods.
Friday was the last day that locations that accept Fresh Access Bucks will provide tokens for SNAP recipients. Fresh Access Bucks tokens may be spent until Aug. 16.
Feeding Florida oversees the Fresh Access Bucks programs through funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program, as well as state, local and philanthropic sources.
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“We have to pause the program until our next funding sources resumes,” says Katie Delaney, program director for Feeding Florida Fresh Access Bucks.
The reverberations may be felt throughout Northeast Florida. In Duval County, four farmers markets, as well as The Corner at Deb’s Store on the Eastside, accept Fresh Access Bucks.
Farm to table
Charles Alvarez is a fourth-generation farmer. He is of the owner of Raiford-based Alvarez Farms. Alvarez has spent most of his 47 years selling produce at farmers markets in Jacksonville.
On July 26, days after the Fresh Access Bucks pause was announced, Alvarez says his farm sold more than $1,000 in produce through the Fresh Access Bucks program at two Jacksonville-area farmers markets.
“The access bucks are very good for me as a farmer,” Alvarez tells Jacksonville Today. “As far as increasing my sales, and selling more product, yes, it’s definitely something that is much needed.”
“It helps us farmers out. The same people who bought that $981 worth of stuff (at the Riverside Arts Market) may not have been able to afford it without it. I wouldn’t have made those sales, because people may not have had the cash to buy our cabbage. There are a lot of people who come with the Fresh Access Bucks who buy the $4 in peaches, the $4 in tomatoes, where they may not have the money.”
Alvarez says the retail market has more financial consistency than the wholesale space. That’s one of the reasons why he sells produce in Jacksonville: corn, squash, okra, peas and eggplant.
Alvarez says he sells, on average, $600 to $700 per week at the Riverside Arts Market. Alvarez Farms also sells produce at the Beaches Green Market in Jacksonville Beach as well as the Neptune Beach Farmers Market; however, only the former accepts Fresh Access Bucks.
Who SNAP helps
According to USDA data, almost four out of five families who receive SNAP benefits have elderly or people with disabilities in the household. In Florida, participating households are provided, on average, $325 per month in SNAP benefits.
In Duval County, nearly 121,000 people utilize SNAP benefits as of this month. That is a sharp decline from the nearly 160,000 SNAP users in Duval County last fall.
The Fresh Access Bucks pause does not affect the federal SNAP program.
Florida is not alone in providing programs that extend SNAP benefits. More than 20 states have programs that allow food assistance users to purchase fresh produce at reduced prices.
In nearby Georgia, the program is called Georgia Fresh for Less. The Brunswick Bazaar & Farmer’s Market and WayGreen Local Fare Market in Waycross are the only two places in Southeast Georgia that participate in the program.
Market consistency
This is the second time in the last 12 months that SNAP users have faced uncertainty about benefits. Last October, Congress’ inability to fund the federal government led to a pause in SNAP allocations throughout the country in early November.
The pause spurred Jacksonville law firm Pajcic & Pajcic to donate $100,000 to combat local hunger.
Chloe Kuhn, Riverside Arts Market manager, says the donation provided additional awareness that produce could be purchased through Fresh Access Bucks at the market underneath Interstate 10.
Kuhn says Riverside Arts Market encountered between 15 and 20 Fresh Access Bucks users each week prior to the SNAP pause. Since that time, participation has grown to 50 to 60 Fresh Access Bucks each week.
Kuhn says consistency is critical for farmers markets — whether it’s people who have stretched their SNAP benefits or the farmers who sell produce there.
“It’s all so new. It’s a problem we were not expecting,” Kuhn said in a conversation July 24 with Jacksonville Today. “Even though it’s a short pause, does it change the shopper’s mind about coming back to RAM?” Kuhn asked. “Do they make plans where there are no surprises?”
Delany hopes a new funding source will be secured by the time farmers like Alvarez are harvesting their fall crops.
“It’s a powerful thing to have access, but also have choice. … It’s more than just getting food,” Delaney says. “People are getting a chance to try something new. … When you get to go to a farmers market, and you get to try something unique, you’re able to do that because you have that extra money. And, you find you might end up liking it.”
