New CA Law - Food Stamps at Farmers Markets

[Ben]

So among the bajillion new CA laws that went into effect yesterday, I saw that one of them was:

AB 537 will make food stamps an acceptable form of payment at farmers markets through an EBT process.

I'm  curious on how that will work. I understand this is already in effect in Colorado. I have nothing against people on food stamps eating fresh local food, but the "EBT process" part of the law implies that the seller will have to have the EBT equipment to process the transaction.

Most of the Farmer's markets I see involve people driving into a lot once a week with their trucks and selling their stuff. If it's voluntary on the part of the seller to accept food stamps, no problem. However if they make it a requirement to accept food stamps, it kind of screws the "weekend farmer" who now has a bunch of recordkeeping and extra expenses, and has to evolve from making a few extra bucks on the weekend to becoming a full-fledged business.

[Jamisjockey]

IIRC, won't the new food bill give the FDA the power to regulate farmer's markets, also? 

[sanglant]

i've seen some setup with a cash register in the middle, they were taking CCs but food stamps wouldn't have been hard to add.

oh, cash was still, pay the man with the foodstuffs.

[Jamisjockey]

i've seen some setup with a cash register in the middle, they were taking CCs but food stamps wouldn't have been hard to add.

oh, cash was still, pay the man with the foodstuffs.

Most states have put their food stamps onto a debit card style system. 

[Ben]

If it's just saying that users of food stamps can now use them at farmer's markets, that's not a big problem as far as I'm concerned. I actually rather see that than the ability to use food stamps at the Whole Foods or other expensive "gourmet grocers". I also know there are farmer's market sellers who do it every day, and I'm sure for them it is cost effective to take electronic payment. I would just hate to see this foisted upon part time people trying to supplement their day job income.

[Physics]

At the Portland Farmers market, I believe you can go to the information center and get tokens for your food stamps, which you can then use throughout the market.

[Jamisjockey]

Being able to access welfare at the farmer's market, for food, fine by me.  But I'd certainly be pissed to find out that the farmers are being forced to take it.

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

At the Portland Farmers market, I believe you can go to the information center and get tokens for your food stamps, which you can then use throughout the market.

thats what they do here too  its great  the folks get a much better value for their food buck both in quantity and nutritional value.

the only better thing from my end would be helping them learn to grow it

[Ben]

Being able to access welfare at the farmer's market, for food, fine by me. 

Good point. I see lots of stuff besides food for sale at Farmer's markets. If they get tokens or similar that are good for anything in the market, they have to be on the honor system. Unless the tokens specifically state "food only", and then of course you need some way to enforce that.

[RoadKingLarry]

At the Portland Farmers market, I believe you can go to the information center and get tokens for your food stamps, which you can then use throughout the market.

Something similar at the larger markets here also. It is a voluntary program, so far.
The Farmer's Market I sell at is a start up operation and we are operating on a very thin shoe string. We don't really need much more than that, we pay for advertising and do group buys for things like produce bags and other packaging.
A requirement to be able to process food stamps at our operation would likely put us out of business. The location we set up at does not have electricity or telecomm capability and the cellular broadband here is the next thing to nonexistent. We would have no way other than paper to process the transaction and no way to verify the food stamp debit card.

As far as the new food safety act is concerned it will have an impact on farmer's markets, how much of an impact remains to be seen, so far I'm not overly pessimistic but I'm not jumping for joy about it.
The regulatory entities charged with making and enforcing the new rules have a pretty long lead time to promulgate the new requirements, 6+ months IIRC.

[HankB]

. . . the only better thing from my end would be helping them learn to grow it

But that would entail working for one's food - a concept that is both demeaning and degrading, with possible overtones of intolerance, lack of empathy, and possible racism. Shame on you!

(BTW, over the years I've demeaned myself plenty in my own backyard gardens.  )

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

But that would entail working for one's food - a concept that is both demeaning and degrading, with possible overtones of intolerance, lack of empathy, and possible racism. Shame on you!

(BTW, over the years I've demeaned myself plenty in my own backyard gardens.  )

i stand before you chagrined and corrected
apropos to nothin at all i just got off the phone with a guy being evicted for the second time in 90 days  4th time in 2 years. he lived in a fleabag hotel for a year.   hes got a souped up corvette though that costs him almost 600 a month in payments. and he "HAD" to move into the 1100 a month place "since it came with a flat screen" as opposed to the 625 including utilities trailer that i recommended. and did i mention that i lived in that trailer for 3 years? or that when this couple inherited 80 k a few years back they chose not o pay off vette but instead bought 25 worth of aftermarket parts to "enchance" it?  hes 54  his wife is in her mid 40's . 
last words to me when he didn't like my tone on the phone?  "i didn't do anything wrong!"