For years Cleveland families on SNAP benefited from a “produce perks” program that matched up to $10 of their grocery spending on fruits and vegetables at Dave’s supermarkets. The incentive helped low‑income shoppers stretch their food budgets and boosted sales for the local retailer.
That match vanished when the Trump administration terminated a three‑year, $2.8 million federal grant that had funded the program statewide. The administration said the money supported initiatives tied to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) or that discriminated on the basis of protected characteristics, prompting the cancellation.
Local impact
“The pause of the program at retailers has been significant for SNAP recipients in Cuyahoga County,” said Morgan Taggart, director of Food Access Raises Everyone, a Cleveland‑based food‑access nonprofit. “Not having that extra incentive to purchase fresh fruits and vegetables at a time when there are so many other constraints on people’s food budgets makes it difficult.”
While the match remains available at farmers markets in Cuyahoga County, Dave’s— the only grocery chain in the county that participated—has been forced to suspend the partnership. Produce Perks Midwest, the nonprofit that administers the program, raised enough private funding to keep the farmers‑market match alive but could not cover the larger volume of dollars distributed through Dave’s.
Efforts to restore the program
Produce Perks Midwest is seeking new funding to bring the supermarket match back. The organization applied for a new federal grant earlier this year and expects a decision this fall. Executive director Tevis Foreman hopes the program can resume at Dave’s and expand to additional Ohio counties that lack local funding options.
Dave’s co‑president Aaron Saltzman declined to comment on the pause, while co‑president Dan Saltzman previously noted a roughly 10 % drop in SNAP‑related revenue over the past year, adding strain to the store’s business model.
Background
The produce‑perks concept began in Cleveland around 2009 as a pilot at farmers markets, matching SNAP dollars dollar‑for‑dollar. Federal funding arrived in 2015, leading to the creation of Produce Perks Midwest in 2017 and the expansion of the supermarket pilot at Dave’s Mercado on Cleveland’s near West Side. Early data showed customers who used the coupons more than doubled their produce purchases.
After receiving federal grants in 2018, 2021 and 2024, the program grew to multiple Dave’s locations and other grocery stores across Ohio. The most recent grant was cancelled, prompting the current funding gap.
Local advocates remain optimistic that new federal resources or private donations will restore the match, arguing that the incentive is a vital tool for promoting healthy eating among families facing rising food costs.
Original reporting: Signal Cleveland — read the source article.
