Once your holiday parties are over, you might find yourself with a fridge full of leftovers, including all the fruits and veggies you doubled up on at your local farmers market. Think twice before you toss them – leftovers can be just as exciting and delicious as the meal itself, and using them can help eliminate food waste.
Read MoreThe holidays are often a time when families gather and share a meal. While comfort foods are common during these family gatherings, it is still important to make healthy choices and eat mindfully.
Many favorite holiday dishes can be given a healthy twist. You can substitute canned fruits and vegetables for fresh produce, and many yummy foods can be baked instead of fried. Get your family in the kitchen and whip up some of these healthy takes on holiday favorites. SNAP customers can double up on any of the fruits and veggies in these recipes for twice the holiday cheer!
Read MoreMeet your Arizona farmers, businesses, market managers and more in our "Voices of Arizona Farmers Markets" series! We visited the Prescott Farmers Market, where we spoke with Sarah Hyde from Hassayampa Vineyard and Farm. Stop by the market every Saturday morning to meet farmers, connect with the community and double up on locally-grown fruits and vegetables.
Stay tuned for more stories from our Double Up Food Bucks Arizona farmers markets and partners!
Read More“What do you get when you drop a pumpkin? Squash.”
Halloween is just around the corner! It’s time for costumes, haunts, family, and usually lots of sugary snacks. This year, you can ensure your littles ones have tons of fun and cut down on the ghoulish sugar-buzz with festive fruit and veggie snacks.
Read MoreNational Hispanic Heritage Month wraps up this week, but there’s still time to celebrate with some festive and appetizing eats.
Read MoreMeet your Arizona farmers, businesses, market managers and more in our "Voices of Arizona Farmers Markets" series! Our first stop was at Roadrunner Park Farmers Market, where we spoke with Guy Gillespie from On the Vine Farms. Stop by the market every Saturday morning to meet farmers, connect with neighbors, and double up on locally-grown fruits and vegetables.
Read MoreSeptember is National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month – an opportunity to raise awareness about the state of children’s health across the country and explore ways to promote healthy weight and lifestyles.
Here at Double Up Food Bucks Arizona, we love fresh produce, and we love sharing ways to eat more of it. One of the best ways to promote healthy weight for your family every day is by adding more fruits and vegetables to your meals. Whether you have a picky eater at home, or you need a little help getting creative with your produce, these tips can help you add a healthy kick to any dish.
Read MoreWhen the leaves turn brown and the weather cools down, many markets open their doors again to offer seasonal fall produce.
New fruits and veggies will be popping up at farmers markets across the state. As summer harvests fade away, delicious sweet potatoes, squash, pumpkins, radishes, green leafy lettuce, kale, Swiss chards, turnips, sweet peppers and more will fill the stands at your favorite market.
Read MoreFarmers markets can be much more than a place to buy fresh produce. Food brings people together, and markets can often become pillars of their communities. As we continue to join in on the Farmer’s Market Celebration, we’re highlighting markets that foster community. By creating a central gathering place, bringing people of all walks of life together, or celebrating the uniqueness of their hometowns, these Arizona farmers markets have done just that:
Read MoreAs the summer goes on, so does the Farmers Market Celebration! We’re continuing to raise awareness about how impactful farmers markets are, and how much they benefit our communities. Over the next few weeks, we’ll be focusing on how farmers markets become pillars of community and bring people together. Many farmers markets celebrate the uniqueness of their hometowns, and many act as a central gathering place for neighbors and vendors.
Read MoreWhen a farmers market opens in a neighborhood, the entire community benefits. These markets often act as important points of access for healthy food for community members who need it the most. This week, we’re highlighting more Arizona markets that go above and beyond in championing healthy food for all as we take part in the American Farmland Trust’s Farmers Market Celebration.
Read MoreFarmers markets play an important role in bringing healthy food to all Arizonans. Over the next few weeks, we’re highlighting a few of our Arizona markets that go above and beyond when it comes to serving neighborhoods and community members who need it the most.
Read MoreThe American Farmland Trust’s Farmers Market Celebration is raising awareness about the importance of farmers markets to growers and communities across the country, and we’re taking part in it all summer long. Our focus over the next few weeks is on farmers markets and the people that go above and beyond in bringing healthy food to neighborhoods that need it the most. Many farmers markets assist low-income neighbors, work with vulnerable seniors, donate food to local food banks, or accept federal food and nutrition program benefits.
Read MoreOver the next few months, Double Up Food Bucks Arizona is highlighting our incredible markets and growers as part of the American Farmland Trust’s Farmers Market Celebration. We reached out to a few markets that go above and beyond when it comes to supporting family farmers and educating their communities about the issues family farmers face.
Read MorePlanting and harvesting may be the last tasks on your mind during our Arizona summers, but the heat doesn’t mean you have to hang up your gardening gloves for the season. There are tons of edible plants you can grow during the summer, whether it’s in the comfort of your own home or outside. Spice up your summer meals and keep your thumb green with these home-grown veggies and herbs!
Read MoreDouble Up Food Bucks can help you stretch your food budget, but there are plenty of ways to stretch it even further. We want to help you get the most out of your money! Let’s set the scene: You’ve just returned from the farmers market with a trove of fresh fruits and veggies for you and your family. You’ve sliced, diced, chopped, and cubed everything you need for your next healthy meal, but what happens to the excess?
Read MoreIf you visit your local farmers market this June, you might find yourself leaving with eggs, honey, tortillas, and tons of fresh produce. If you’re shopping with your SNAP Quest card at participating markets, you’ll be heading home with even more in-season, Arizona-grown fruits and veggies.
Wondering what to do with all of your fresh finds? Check out these “5 Token Recipes” to start stretching your food budget. The ingredients for these recipes can all be purchased at your local market for approximately $5 spent on your SNAP card, plus your $5 worth of Double Up tokens. Many of these recipes will also leave you with leftover ingredients to use for other dishes.
Read MoreLast week, we celebrated an exciting launch of a new farmers market in El Oso Park in Maryvale, a community located in west Phoenix that has low access to quality food sources. We’re thrilled to work with local organizations and growers to help increase access to healthy food for this community, and hope this effort can serve as an example of the benefits of farmers markets in food insecure areas across the state.
A recent Feeding America study found that 15.8 percent of Arizonans are food insecure. Urban sprawl, lack of grocery stores and inadequate public transportation leave many who reside in food desert communities with the task of traveling though the extreme Arizona heat for basic needs and groceries. Many rural communities face similar challenges. Farmers markets can help bridge this gap and increase access to healthier food in every community.
Read MoreThere are many misconceptions and myths about farmers markets and local goods. Is it really more expensive to buy produce at a market instead of a grocery store? Aren’t organic fruits in the produce section the same as those at market stands? Once you learn more about the misconceptions of farmers markets, you may find you’d like to try shopping at one.
Local farmers markets are great for families, farmers and communities, so why not try something fun and fresh? If you get the chance, check out a market in your neighborhood this season!
Read More
