The SNAP program is a food assistance program through the state of Oregon. In Multnomah County alone there are approximately 112,610 people who benefit from the SNAP program. It was formerly known as the Food Stamp Program and has been in place since 1961. It is the largest food assistance program in the nation. Over the years the program has changed to be more cost effective and afford the greatest benefits. Change's in the program have focused on the nutrition of the people needing it. The program works with state agencies, nutrition educators, and neighborhood and faith-based organizations to ensure that people using the program make informed decisions about applying for the program and so they can access benefits. They also work with state partners and the retail community to improve administration of the program and ensure continued program integrity. Families who benefit from this program need affordable, local options for using their benefits efficiently and working within the community furthers this goal.

Many people who use the SNAP program also live in a food desert meaning that they don't live within a half mile to a mile of a grocery store. Consider East Portland, the quickest growing area of Portland, where 40% of Portland's children are growing up. Roughly 5,108 people live below the poverty line in East Portland. This neighborhood is also a food desert. Many residents live more than a mile from a grocery store and even further from ones that carry affordable food. Even though only an 1/8th of the people living in the neighborhood are under the poverty level everyone lives with the hardship of living in a food desert. Having SNAP benefits is weakened by lack of access to fresh, healthy, affordable food.
One of the great things about the Portland metropolitan are is that it is surrounded by farm land. There are family farms and CSA's located within 50 miles of the Portland area. One of the downsides is that getting that healthy food into neighborhoods where it is needed isn't always easy. One of the ways Portland brings in fresh food is with it's many Farmers Markets. There are currently 20 Farmers Markets in Portland with many more hoping to open . Most of those currently use the SNAP program. This is a tremendous help to the people living in the areas where the markets are. However, those areas that already lack healthy, affordable food would benefit even more from markets that also accept SNAP. These markets are mainly located in neighborhoods that aren't at risk of being a food desert. Within the areas of Portland that aren't at risk there are currently 10 markets. The remaining markets, approximately 8, are spread over a large, highly populace area. Only two are within the most at risk neighborhoods, with East Portland having only one. Lents International Farmers Market is in East Portland  and  is open Sundays May - November and operated by Zenger Farms. The market accepts SNAP tokens and matches up to the first $10 spent. In a neighborhood of 140,000 people this is a good start, but not nearly enough to fully support a healthy neighborhood.

There are barriers to putting Farmers Markets in more neighborhoods. In some communities there isn't available property or the cost of owning or renting property is too high. Sometimes it's that the areas with the most need are the areas that are also seemingly undesirable for running a business. These neighborhoods may seem like a risk for people selling goods. In some neighborhoods the open spaces are not walkable due to bad streets or lack of sidewalks. City planning may not allow for closing streets for markets. However, there are many good reasons to have them, especially in areas that have higher crime and poverty rates. Farmers Markets become neighborhood destinations. They are third spaces in the community; allowing people to congregate outside of home and work. They can fill empty lots, enliven streets and bring others into the neighborhood. This puts eyes on the streets allowing for people to feel safer and want to participate in their neighborhood. Having a local market can keep money in the neighborhood. Families will also have reduced travel time which means they will spend more time in their neighborhood. Their money will go further if they are using SNAP snd benefitting from a matching program.
In some communities nationwide people have come up with innovative solutions to the food desert and poverty problem. In the same way that Farmers Markets bring fresh, healthy, affordable foods to Portland other communities are considering the idea of food trucks. Bringing food trucks, with their ability to be mobile and which tend to be more reasonably priced, into food deserts can provide communities with healthier and affordable options. Another option that is being looked into is mobile markets. These work in a way similar to Farmers Markets. They bring fresh food into communities on a regular schedule. 

Portland's neighborhoods already benefit from both Farmers Markets and the SNAP program. Finding ways to extend these benefits into the larger community would be a boon for Portland's inhabitants.