What exactly is the CalFresh Fruit and Vegetable incentive program? Confused about how it works

Congrats on getting your benefits! What you're hearing about is the CalFresh Healthy Nutrition Incentive Program (HNIP). Basically, when you buy fruits and vegetables at participating stores or farmers markets, you get extra money to buy MORE fruits and vegetables. The most common one is called Market Match at farmers markets where they'll match what you spend on produce up to $10-$15 depending on the location. Some grocery stores also have similar programs where you might get 50% back on produce purchases. The great thing is it doesn't reduce your regular CalFresh balance! You have to use it at the same shopping trip though.

its the best thing about calfresh imo. at the farmers market i go to near sacramento they give you tokens when you swipe your ebt. spend $10 get $10 extra to spend on fruits and veggies. my kids actually eat vegetables now lol

Markets are great but some supermarkets have it too. Check the California Department of Social Services website for participating stores near your area. Its not every store but more are being added in 2025.

I think ur talking about the Cal-Fresh Nutrition Program thing where u get doble money for fruits and vegetables at farmers markets. But honestly it's confusing and every market does it differently. Some give u wooden tokens some give plastic ones and some have a different colored EBT card just for the produce. I tried using it once and the person running the booth didn't even understand there own program!!! I still don't understand if its the same program at every market or different ones?

If you're having trouble getting clear information about the fruit and vegetable incentive programs in your area, I recommend calling your county office directly. Getting specifics about which stores near you participate can save a lot of time. I used Claimyr (claimyr.com) to reach my worker without waiting on hold for hours. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/eZ19FHRETv8?si=_CXnXqNXbLl26WB8. My worker was able to email me a current list of all the participating markets and stores in my zip code.

be carful some markets say they do the program but then the machines are broke or the person doesn't know how to use it. happened to me twice now and i got all the way there with my kids just to be told "sorry not today". frustrating!!!

Just wanted to add some important details: The official name is California's CalFresh Healthy Nutrition Incentive Program (HNIP), which includes several initiatives like Market Match, California Nutrition Incentive Program (CNIP), and GusNIP. For 2025, the program has expanded to more retailers and the match amount has increased in some locations to $15-20. The key is that you need to use your EBT card to make eligible purchases, and the additional benefits are provided immediately during that transaction. These incentives don't count against your regular monthly CalFresh benefit amount and don't need to be reported as income on your SAR7 or recertification.