1. What is the WIC Farmers' Market 

Nutrition Program (FMNP)?

The FMNP is associated with the Special 

Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, 

Infants and Children, generally known as WIC. The 

WIC Program provides supplemental foods, health 

care referrals and nutrition education at no cost to 

low-income pregnant, breastfeeding and nonbreastfeeding postpartum women, and to infants and 

children up to 5 years of age, who are found to be at 

nutritional risk.

The FMNP was established by Congress in July 

1992, to provide fresh, nutritious, unprepared, 

locally grown fruits and vegetables through 

farmers’ markets and roadside stands to WIC 

participants, and to expand awareness and use of,

and sales at, farmers’ markets and roadside stands.

2. Where does the FMNP operate? 

For fiscal year (FY) 2011, 46 State agencies, U.S. 

Territories and federally recognized Indian Tribal 

Organizations (ITO) received grants to operate the 

FMNP: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, the 

Chickasaw Nation (Oklahoma), California, the 

Choctaw Nation (Oklahoma), Connecticut, District 

of Columbia, Five Sandoval Indian Pueblos (New 

Mexico), Florida, Georgia, Guam, Illinois, Indiana, 

Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, 

Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, 

Mississippi Choctaw, Montana, Nebraska, New 

Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, 

Ohio, Oregon, Osage Nation (Oklahoma), 

Pennsylvania, Pueblo of San Felipe (New Mexico), 

Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, 

Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virgin Islands, 

Washington, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. Not all 

State agencies operate the FMNP on a statewide 

basis.

3. Who can participate? 

Women, infants over 4 months old, and children 

who are certified to receive WIC Program benefits 

or who are on a waiting list for WIC certification 

are eligible to participate in the FMNP. State 

agencies may serve some or all of these categories. 

4. How many recipients are served? 

During FY 2011, 1.9 million WIC participants 

received FMNP benefits.

5. What foods are available through the 

FMNP?

A variety of fresh, nutritious, unprepared, locally 

grown fruits, vegetables and herbs can be purchased 

with FMNP checks or coupons. State agencies may

limit sales to specific foods grown within the State 

borders to encourage FMNP recipients to support 

farmers in their own States.

6. How does the Program operate?

The FMNP is administered through a Federal/State 

partnership in which the Food and Nutrition Service 

(FNS) provides cash grants to State agencies. The 

FMNP is administered by State agencies such as 

State Agriculture Departments, State Health 

Departments, or ITOs. As a prerequisite to 

receiving Federal funds for the FMNP, each 

applying or participating State agency must submit 

an annual State Plan describing how the State 

agency intends to implement, operate and 

administer all aspects of the FMNP within its 

jurisdiction. Eligible WIC participants are issued 

FMNP checks or coupons in addition to their 

WIC Farmers' Market Nutrition Program
regular WIC benefits. These checks or coupons are 

used to buy eligible foods from farmers at farmers’ 

markets and/or roadside stands that have been 

approved by the State agency to accept FMNP 

coupons. The farmers or farmers’ market managers

then submit the redeemed FMNP checks or coupons 

to the bank or State agency for reimbursement. 

The Federal FMNP benefit level must be at least 

$10 and cannot be more than $30 per year, per 

recipient. However, State agencies may supplement 

the Federal benefit level with State, local or private

funds. 

Nutrition education is provided to FMNP recipients 

by the State agency, often through an arrangement 

with the local WIC agency. Other program partners 

may provide nutrition education and/or educational 

information to FMNP recipients. For example, 

Cooperative Extension Programs, local chefs, 

farmers or farmers’ markets associations, and 

various other non-profit or for-profit organizations 

may provide nutrition education to FMNP 

recipients. These educational arrangements help to 

encourage FMNP recipients to improve and expand 

their diets by adding fresh fruits and vegetables, as 

well as educate them on how to select, store and 

prepare the fresh fruits and vegetables they buy with 

their FMNP coupons.

7. How does a farmer or farmers’ market 

become authorized to accept FMNP 

coupons?

Each State agency is responsible for authorizing 

individual farmers, farmers’ markets, roadside 

stands or all of the above to participate in the 

FMNP. Only farmers, farmers’ markets and/or 

roadside stands authorized by the State agency may 

accept and redeem FMNP coupons. Individuals 

who exclusively sell produce grown by someone 

else, such as wholesale distributors, cannot be 

authorized to participate in the FMNP. 

8. How many farmers and farmers’ 

markets participate in the FMNP?

During FY 2011, 18,487 farmers, 4,079 farmers' 

markets and 3,184 roadside stands were authorized 

to accept FMNP checks or coupons. Checks and 

coupons redeemed through the FMNP resulted in 

over $16.4 million in revenue to farmers during FY 

2011.

9. How is the FMNP funded?

Congress provides funds for the FMNP each year. 

Federal funds support 100 percent of the program’s 

food costs, and 70 percent of the administrative 

costs necessary to operate the Program. State

agencies operating the FMNP must match the 

Federal administrative funds allocated to them by 

contributing at least 30 percent of the Program’s 

total administrative cost. Indian State agencies may 

receive a lower match, but not less than 10 percent 

of the administrative cost of the program. The 

matching funds can come from a variety of sources, 

such as State and local funds, private funds, similar 

programs, and program income. 

10. What is the current funding level?

For FY 2012, $16.548 million was appropriated for 

the FMNP. 

11. How can I obtain further 

information?

The FMNP contact person for each State agency 

can be found at: 

www.fns.usda.gov/wic/Contacts/farm.HTM

For further information, please visit our website 

at: www.fns.usda.gov/wic

April 2012