A diet that includes fresh products is important, but it’s not always accessible to everyone.
Many Hands Resource Centre in Morden is bringing back a program that will help address this gap with the help of a few community resources.
The result will be that a greater number of families — despite financial barriers — will be able to enjoy the bounty that the summer months bring.
The Manitoba Food Currency Program
Mariyam Tsygankova, the executive director of Many Hands, explains the Manitoba Food Currency Program (MFCP).
“This is an initiative by Direct Farm Manitoba designed to enhance food security for households facing financial challenges while simultaneously supporting local farms and farmers' markets,” she says.
This year, Many Hands will receive 110 packages (90 from Direct Farm and 20 from the Morden Area Foundation) that consist of vouchers for local farmers’ markets.
Tsygankova says that each package contains a weekly bundle of ten vouchers for $3 each for a total of 14 weeks.
“These vouchers can be redeemed for fresh produce, meat, honey, eggs, and other things at the local farmers’ market,” she says.
A popular program
The MFCP program is one that began in 2020. Since then, it has proven popular in the community.
“The demand last year was very, very high,” says Tsygankova. “We were able to provide [about 100 families] with the vouchers, and we still had 30 families on our waiting list.”
The executive director says that community members have been asking about the program since the beginning of the year.
Expanding the program
According to Tsygankova, interest in the program has coincided with its expansion.
“In 2022, the Manitoba government committed nearly 1.1 million over three years to expand the program, aiming to assist approximately 700 families annually,” she says. “That's a great number, and it's a great program.”
The executive director says MFCP has widespread benefits.
“[It’s] great not only for families who need food support, but also for local businesses,” she says. “Last year, for example, local farmer vendors made about $47,000 through this initiative.”
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How to register
Registration for the program, which opened on May 29th, will be available until June 6th.
Anyone interested can sign up on the Many Hands website here or visit the centre in Morden for a paper application. For the program, families with the lowest incomes will be prioritized among applicants.
Tsygankova encourages families to apply for the program that strives to fight food insecurity.
“This is really great opportunity to get good and nutritious food. Especially now, when groceries are so expensive,” she says.
With files from Jayme Giesbrecht