SANTA FE TODAY
: Food King and Lowe’s grocery stores are giving shoppers in Santa Fe and Albuquerque new motivation to eat more locally grown fruits and vegetables this season.
Shoppers who receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits (SNAP, formerly known as food stamps) can now receive dollar-for-dollar match—up to $25 per visit—when they purchase New Mexico-grown fresh fruits and vegetables at participating locations. This means, for example, that SNAP customers who bring $20 worth of qualifying produce to the cash register are only charged $10 to their electronic benefits transfer (EBT) card.
On Wednesday, when the program rolls out, a representative from Roadrunner Food Bank will be on hand at the Albuquerque 4th Street store to help shoppers sign up for the federal SNAP program.
Rob Ybarra and Mike Venticinque display two of the many New Mexico foods sold at Food King
“Lowe’s is a family-owned grocery business with 22 stores in New Mexico,” says Rob Ybarra, Director of Produce for the Littlefield, Texas-based company. “We’re committed to offering our customers fresh, healthy food at the best-possible prices, and Double Up Food Bucks will help us do that.”
The Double Up Food Bucks program is administered by the New Mexico Farmers’ Marketing Association at 80+ locations across the state, including farmers’ markets, farm stands, and select grocery stores.
Shoppers can visit Food King in Santa Fe located at 1700 St. Michael’s Drive from 7:00AM to 10PM and the Lowe’s 4th Street location in Albuquerque from 7:30AM to 9:00PM.
You should make a food king in Rio rancho n.m we need one out here please
In the Albuquerque area, Food King is known as Lowe’s Grocery Store. It is located at 4701 4th St NW in Albuquerque, about 10 miles from Rio Rancho. Their number is (505) 341-0088.
How do we know what produce is a qualifying produce? I’ve gone to a market in Albuquerque that said they had qualifying produce, it sounded to me when I called and asked, I was told like tons of produce, so many they can’t remember which ones they had which qualified for the double bucks when using Snap.
I specifically made a trip on the bus which took 40 minutes one way to get to that store, when I got there I inquired about the double bucks produce and was shown only 2 items that I’ve never seen before or heard of, the price was like $8 for one item and like $5 per pound for the other! And I honestly don’t recall what just 1 item, but I believe the other was a weird fruit, it was like $3 for one, but I do know that in ABQ N.M. maybe 5 people probably ate them. I was horrified, I mean c’mon, why can’t you have something we all know, like fresh N.M. tomatoes, lettuce, jalapenos, green Chile? And many other known produce that we all definitely will eat and use our Snap benefits to get double bucks. So, who decides which produce that gets bought gets double bucks? I doubt it’s not it’s the consumer and Snap card user. But I would sure like to know what produce items get double bucks, and I’m praying that it’s a well known, well at least 10 well known produce items that get the double bucks nod! Corn on the cob, avocados, squash of various colors, pineapples, limes, lemons? Any of those? I’m praying Yes! Thank you for listening to me, rather us, my family! Christina S.
Hello Christina, thank you for your questions and apologies for the delayed reply! To answer your questions, Double Up Food Bucks can be redeemed for New Mexico-grown produce, lightly-processed New Mexico-grown produce, and herb and vegetable plant starts. But the availability will vary for each local food outlet and by season (for example, right now there will be limited produce available since the growing season hasn’t yet started).Tomatoes, lettuce, jalapeños, green chile, corn, a variety of squashes, and more can certainly be found when they are in-season and available at Double Up grocery stores, farmers’ markets, and other local food outlets in Albuquerque. Pineapple, lemons, limes, and avocados are not grown in New Mexico, so they do not qualify for Double Up Food Bucks. You could still buy those items with your SNAP EBT card, however. Check out the Harvest Calendar to see what produce is in season near you. The Harvest Calendar can be downloaded and printed to take with you on your next shopping trip or posted on your fridge. Also, you can use our Find-a-Market locator to find your closest local food outlet that accepts Double Up Food Bucks by clicking on the “Double Up Food Bucks” filter, which is listed above the map. Please let us know if you have any additional questions and we’re happy to answer them!