NOFA Vermont’s Farm Share Program assists low-income Vermonters in obtaining farm fresh foods. Farm Share participants receive partially subsidized shares from Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) farms. Each year, the Farm Share Program assists over 1,400 individuals participating in CSA programs.
Vermont Farm Share depends on donations from the community; please participate in our annual Share the Harvest fundraiser!
You can also click here to contribute online, or download this form (PDF) to send in with your check.
Shares are full for Fall/Winter. Applications for spring shares are now available below.
*Interested in Senior Farm Share? Please click here.
About the Program
NOFA Vermont’s Farm Share Program has been serving Vermont since 1994. The program was begun in response to the increase in food insecure children and adults in Vermont as well as the recognition of the gap that exists between social service providers seeking food for limited-income individuals, and farmers seeking a local market for their food. The program has grown from serving a dozen individual families and three farms in 1995 to more than 1,400 Vermonters in 2010.
Food Insecurity in Vermont
Hunger Free Vermont notes that 32% of Vermonters cannot afford either enough food or nutritious food. Nearly 88,000 Vermonters live in food insecure households. Adults in households determined to be food insecure are so limited in resources that they are running out of food, reducing the quality of food their family eats, feeding their children unbalanced diets, or skipping meals so their children can eat.
NOFA Vermont’s Response: The Farm Share Program
Drawing on NOFA Vermont's long relationship working with farmers committed to community food production, we established the program as a way to link food producers with limited-income Vermonters. Each year, the Farm Share Program subsidizes the cost of Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) shares, providing a season's worth of fresh farm products (vegetables, eggs, bread, meat) to limited-income families and children, and seniors (Senior Farm Share).
The CSA is a unique model of food assistance that:
- Encourages the local consumption of highly nutritious, fresh, and diverse farm products, regardless of economic status;
- Supports long-term changes in daily intake of vegetables and fruits because the fresh food is available each week for several months;
- Connects people of diverse life circumstances to the farmer, land, and food they eat through planting, harvesting, and pick-up of products at the farm;
- Supports the agricultural costs incurred by farmers through one-time, up-front, member payment for a 15-30 week share of the season's harvest;
- Provides fair market value, through direct, farmer to customer sales; and
- Encourages individuals and families to spend their food dollars locally.
Many CSA programs also provide farm and nutrition education through cooking and food preparation workshops, recipes and other resources. Due to program demand, the Vermont Farm Share Program has catalyzed the development of new CSA's in underserved areas of the state.
Who is Eligible to Participate?
Limited-income Vermonters who meet the income eligibility standard may participate in the program. NOFA Vermont uses the eligibility guideline of 185% of poverty – in 2011, that is equivalent to monthly incomes of $1,679 for a single person, $2,268 for a couple, $2,857 for a family of 3, $3,446 for 4, $4,035 for a family of 5 and $4,624 for a family of 6.
How to Participate
If you are interested in participating in the program, please read the program description and complete the application form or contact the office with questions. Applications for the Spring 2012 season are available here and will be accepted starting January 1, 2012.
Funding the Program
Farm Share funds are raised annually to subsidize CSA shares through our annual fundraising event, Share the Harvest, held the first Thursday of October. Participating restaurants pledge between 5-15% of their sales on the day of the event to benefit our Vermont Farm Share members. The funds raised from Share the Harvest are used to match what farmers are able to raise through their community and/or their CSA shareholders. CSA share recipients contribute the remaining 50% of the cost of the CSA share.
To make a contribution to Vermont Farm Share, please click here.
Fletcher Allen Health Care is partnering with Irving Fuel of Portsmouth, New Hampshire the Northeast Organic Farming Association (NOFA-VT), and the Intervale Food Hub on a new program that provides people with limited incomes with subsidized farm shares from a local CSA and cooking classes on the hospital’s green roof pavilion.
Farm Share Cooking at Fletcher Allen will meet on Wednesdays from June 15th to October 5th when program participants will convene for the cooking class and to pick-up their farm shares. The classes will take place at 4:30 pm at the Medical Center Campus in Burlington
NOFA Vermont is coordinating the sign up, so please fill out the Farm Share application (found here) and indicate on the form that you are interested specifically in this program: Farm Share Cooking at Fletcher Allen.
There is a limit on the number of participants, so sign up early!
What is the Senior Farm Share Program?
The Senior Farm Share Program helps limited-income seniors purchase fresh locally-grown fruits and vegetables from their local farmer. Each week a Senior Farm Share member receives a portion of the harvest from the farm. In addition to receiving vegetables, seniors are given the opportunity to connect with other seniors within their residence through food distribution and preparation, learn from ways to cook and preserve their produce, meet other community members who are associated with the farm, and develop a relationship with the farmer who grows the food they eat each week. In 2010, there were over 900 senior farm share members throughout Vermont!
The VT Department of Disabilities, Aging, and Independent Living (VDAIL) and NOFA-VT have identified a number of areas in Vermont that will be served through this program. These residences have been chosen based on a variety of factors including eligibility, number of interested participants, proximity to the farm, and availability and willingness of a residential coordinator to take on responsibilities for pick up and distribution. Each year, the program is able to expand to a limited number of additional sites that meet the above criteria.
To participate in the program, seniors must be 60 or older, although younger adults with a disability may qualify if they also meet the financial criteria. Eligibility is based on 185% of the federal poverty income limit. For instance, in 2010 families with a monthly income at or below $1,670 for a family of one and $2,247 for a family of two were eligible.
The Senior Farm Share Program connects seniors to the farm through what is called, Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) - a means of food distribution where community members purchase a "share" of the seasonal harvest. Senior shares are subsidized through the program, so eligible seniors do not need to pay to participate. Each senior is eligible to receive about $50 worth of fruits and vegetables over the course of 5-10 weeks of the summer.
Each senior will receive enough vegetables to supplement their diet. This program will not provide all of the vegetables you eat during the summer since you will be receiving about $5 in vegetables every week. You may or may not get to choose the kinds of vegetables that are distributed to you. However, many farmers are open to adjusting their shares to suit your preferences, so be sure to let them know what you like and don’t like.
Each farm is different and the farm plan reflects these differences. Many farmers grow for up to 100 families and choose a variety of vegetables for those families based on their soil, the location of the farm, the elevation, the customer desires, and the crops they enjoy growing. Be open to trying new vegetables, but communicate with your coordinator if you are unable to eat certain kinds of vegetables because of dietary restrictions.
Farmers generally begin distribution in mid July. At this time, Senior Farm Share members should expect early summer vegetables, like spinach, beets, greens, broccoli, and some other early vegetables. By late July and early August, seniors should expect a wider variety of vegetables, like tomatoes, potatoes, onions, garlic, squashes, cucumbers, and peppers. The fall harvest brings winter squash, root vegetables, carrots, and greens. Delivery to members will end some time in October.
Each week, on a designated day, the housing coordinator will either pick up the vegetables at the farm or have them delivered to a common kitchen or community space at the senior residence. The housing coordinator will be responsible for the distribution of vegetables to all members, but will be requesting assistance from interested seniors. It will be important to find a small group of seniors willing to take on some leadership for the distribution of vegetables to all. Examples of possible distribution methods include:
Situation 1
- At one senior residence, the housing coordinator took a different senior to the farm each week for the pickup. They would then help divide the harvest up among all members.
Situation 2
- The farmer delivered the vegetables to the residence and informed the seniors of the kinds and numbers of vegetables each participant was entitled to. Participants would then go through the line and take their vegetables.
The VDAIL and the NOFA Vermont are administrators of the program.
For questions about senior eligibility, residence eligibility, or nutrition education, please call: Mary Woodruff, Vermont Department of Disabilities, Aging and Independent Living,
(802) 241-2930
For questions about the farm, the vegetables, nutrition education, or distribution, please contact Jean Hamilton, Northeast Organic Farming Association of Vermont at
802-434-4122 ext. 22