CONCORD, N.H. — The New Hampshire Food Bank has capped a food assistance program at $5 per transaction, citing its popularity and uncertainty about federal funding.
There was previously no limit on how much produce and other healthy products income-eligible participants could purchase through the incentive program called Granite State Market Match at participating grocery stores and farmers’ markets.
The program covers half the cost of produce for low-income people shopping with their Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Benefits, or SNAP, formerly called food stamps.
There are 82 participating locations around New Hampshire and 5,000 customers per month that will be affected by the change, which went into effect earlier this month, according to Brendan Cornwell, the New Hampshire Nutrition Incentive Network Coordinator at the New Hampshire Food Bank.
“It’s just painful,” said Ed King, general manager of the Littleton Food Co-op. He said the program has been popular and successful in the seven years it’s been offered at the co-op.
Before the cap, the average reimbursement through the program was $7.14 per transaction, according to Cornwell. And there’s still no limit on how many transactions a person can make.
Shopping the Littleton Food Co-op specials, $5 would get you a pink lady apple (69 cents), a 2-pound bag of mandarins ($3), and one Valencia orange ($1).
The same program is called Double Up Food Bucks New Hampshire when used at participating farmers’ markets, farm stands, and CSAs, or community-supported agriculture.
After the program was launched, King said, SNAP customers increased spending on produce from 13 percent of their dollars to 27 percent.
He believes the new cap could cause SNAP users to purchase 50 percent less produce.
Cromwell said there’s not enough funding to keep the program going without imposing a limit, in part because of how popular it is but also because of uncertainty around federal funding sources.
“We have a certain amount of money that we’re trying to make last as long as we possibly can, because we don’t know when we’re going to get more money,” Cornwell said in an interview.
The application to renew federal funding was pulled from the US Department of Agriculture because of President Trump’s executive orders, Cromwell said, making it unclear when the Food Bank will be able to apply for more funds.
All funding opportunities are under review as of Jan. 23, 2025, according to a notice on the National Institute of Food and Agriculture website.
For every dollar the Food Bank receives from the federal government, it must also provide a dollar toward the program. That money comes from a mix of state funds and supporting partners.
The budget for this year is $320,000 — with $139,000 from the USDA, $100,000 from the state of New Hampshire, and $81,000 from partners, Cornwell said, noting that the organization invoices the state and USDA after the fact.
“If either of these funding streams were to be delayed or disrupted,” he said, “we would not have additional funds available to cover redemptions.”
Since the program began in 2011 it has grown from providing $3,000 a month in incentives to now providing around $40,000 per month, according to Cornwell.
Cornwell said it gives SNAP customers the opportunity to purchase healthy fruits and vegetables they might not otherwise be able to afford. In 2023, the maximum SNAP benefit covered $2.83 per meal, which was not enough to cover a meal anywhere in New Hampshire, according to the Urban Institute.
At the Littleton Food Co-op, King said the reaction he’s heard is one of frustration.
“I really doubt that Elon Musk’s payments are getting frozen or impacted in any way from the federal government, but the people that are on SNAP are getting impacted, so you’re just hurting the wrong people,” King said.
Amanda Gokee can be reached at amanda.gokee@globe.com. Follow her @amanda_gokee.