Community Garden Magazine Issue Eight April 2016 Community Garden Magazine Issue Eight April 2016 | Page 50

How It Works
Step 1: Farmers apply to the Michigan Farmers Market Association (MIFMA) to receive
funding to build a new hoophouse.
Step 2: MIFMA works with community partner organizations, such as Head Start and Great
Start Readiness Program agencies, to distribute vouchers to vulnerable families
participating in their programming. The Michigan State University Center for Regional Food
Systems (MSU CRFS) helps establish a Farm to School relationship between a qualifying
school and a participating farmer if desired.
Step 3: Families use the vouchers to buy produce from participating Hoophouses for Health
farmers at local farmers markets, whi le farmers also provide produce to schools.
Step 4: Farmers submit their vouchers and Farm to School sales records to MIFMA to pay
off their “loan.”
The Result: Families get access to fresh, healthy, Michigan foods, and farmers get a new
hoophouse through a zero-interest, five year “loan” that they pay back in produce instead of
cash.

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