Published: 7/20/2018 12:06:27 AM
Modified: 7/20/2018 12:06:39 AM
West Lebanon — The National Association of Farmers Market Nutrition Programs announced Thursday that it will provide funding to a company that provides a platform for processing benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, formerly known as food stamps, for farmers markets with funding so that it can continue operating through August.
The Austin, Texas-based company, Novo Dia Group, had previously planned to stop operating its Mobile Market plus software at the end of this month.
“This potential shutdown of service could translate to lost sales in the millions of dollars processed through farmers markets,” the association said in a Thursday press release. “The NAFMNP Board of Directors has thus decided to provide short-term emergency support to avoid any disruption in service.”
Upper Valley farmers markets that use Mobile Market plus to process electronic benefit transfers include those in Norwich, Lebanon and Newport.
In addition to SNAP, which in Vermont is also known as 3SquaresVT, the platform processes transactions for matching programs Granite State Market Match in New Hampshire and Crop Cash in Vermont. Both programs match the first $10 participants spend in SNAP at the farmers market each week.
The association said that it believes that Mobile Market plus is the only platform with the ability to accept all tender types, work on 4G networks and work wirelessly for farmers markets and farmers who may not have access to landlines.
“We are extremely grateful to NAFMNP for their continued support,” Josh Wiles, President of Novo Dia, said in the release. “This will not only avoid any immediate disruption of service, but also allows additional time to explore avenues for a long-term sustainable solution.”