Some low-income shoppers might assume farmers markets, with their specialty products, are out of reach. But more of these markets in the Commonwealth are accepting public benefits such as SNAP for fresh produce, helping farmers earn a profit and families eat healthier.

The state-run Healthy Incentives Program provides a dollar-for-dollar reimbursement when SNAP users buy healthy, local food directly from Massachusetts farmers. A family of six, for example, can receive an additional $80 a month on their EBT cards to spend at their local farmers market.

"If we can get this directly into people's kitchens and we can just cover our cost of what it takes to distribute it," said Rich Allium, mobile market manager for Atlas Farms in Deerfield, "then we consider it a win."

A state survey found that each HIP dollar spent results in an additional $2 in local economic impact, when farmers spend that money on local goods and services. Since its creation in 2017, more than 113,000 households have used HIP. Some 44% of those families include seniors, and 30% include children.

Allium meets these families at his mobile farmers market, a converted bus he brings to senior centers in Franklin County and food pantries in Turners Falls and Greenfield. He also works with the Holyoke Housing Authority to ensure pop-up farmers markets visit so-called "food deserts."

John Rivera, who manages the Holyoke Farmers Market, one of the oldest in the country, said many farmers offer their customers not just produce, but useful recipes and even tips on how to grow food themselves.

"When you go to a farmers market," he said, "you're not only getting, really, a big bang for your buck, but you're also coming down to the roots of how it was grown, how can you store it - so many other, like, hidden perks."

A study of HIP's first year found that each HIP user increased their fresh fruit and vegetable intake by one serving per day, and eating healthier means public health-care costs are lowered. Patients of the Holyoke Health Center can also get monthly, $20 vouchers to purchase fresh, local produce. The concept is to use food as medicine, and the prescription is the farmers market.

San Diego may seem like a wealthy area, but the mountain communities in the eastern part of the county still struggle with hunger and poverty.

Now, a new $100,000 grant from Save the Children's Innovation Lab will fund the development of a program to mailboxes of shelf-stable food to low-income rural families, starting next year.

Anahid Brakke, president and CEO of the San Diego Hunger Coalition, said the program has been a big hit in other communities.

"The parents said, 'It's like Christmas.' The kids feel like it's Christmas, you know, they get this food box; you know, it's for them," Brakke explained. "It really helps supplement the whole household."

A team from the San Diego Hunger Coalition is at Baylor University in Waco, Texas, this week to learn best practices from other communities. The funds will also be used to train community health navigators who can help people sign up for programs like CalFresh and WIC.

Esther Liew with Save the Children says food boxes that arrive by mail provide rural communities greater access to nutritious food.

"There's little public transportation in rural communities, meaning that they then have limited access to grocery stores and places where they can get fresh and nutritious foods," Liew pointed out. "That makes it really difficult to provide the food that they need for their children and their family members."

Hunger Coalition data showed about 35% of children in the Mountain Empire region live in poverty, which is nearly triple the rate for the rest of San Diego County.

In a recent community food survey of local residents, almost three-quarters said they would run out of food at some point in the last 30 days and did not have the resources to buy more.

One North Carolina Housing Authority in Robeson County has plans to launch a mobile "pay-what-you-can" food bus loaded with fresh fruits, vegetables and other foods that will serve families lacking transportation. The pilot program is one of a handful across the country to receive a $100,000 dollar grant from Save the Children's Rural Child Hunger Research and Innovation Lab to tackle rural hunger.

Colton Allen Oxendine, resident services director with the City of Lumberton's Housing Authority, said many residents have to walk miles to the nearest grocery store because they have no transportation.

"So this bus is going to reach well over 3,000 to 5,000 people," he said. "The goal is to make this a success."

He said residents will be able to use debit, credit, food stamps and whatever cash they have on hand at the mobile bus, and added he expects the program to be up and running by August. According to data from UNC-Chapel Hill, more then 30% of kids living in Robeson County live in food-insecure homes.

Allen Oxendine said many housing authority residents persist largely on processed, unhealthy foods.

"A lot of them resort to the smaller stores like gas stations, Family Dollar, Dollar General. We all know they do not carry fresh fruit and vegetables," he said.

Esther Liew, Lead Associate for Food Security Projects with Save the Children, said solutions to stop child hunger must come from within rural communities.

"What we're hoping is that they will be able to develop ways of working that maybe look a little bit different from how these similar types of programs would work in urban settings, so that we can help them to develop solutions that are specifically for rural contexts," Liew said.

A recent survey by Save the Children and the Child Action Network found 77% of rural parents report being worried they might not be able to afford enough food to feed their family.

Mountaineer Food Bank is partnering with DoorDash to home-deliver groceries to Mercer County's neediest families. The pilot program is one of a handful across the country to receive a $100,000 dollar grant from Save the Children's Rural Child Hunger Research and Innovation Lab to tackle rural hunger.

One in six West Virginia kids struggles with an empty stomach every day, according to Feeding America.

Gabriela Schoolcraft, communications coordinator for Mountaineer Food Bank, explained most families in the state's rural counties do not have a vehicle or are limited by fuel costs. She added the program, which begins this year, will initially serve 200 families.

"We'll get the foods in Mercer County and DoorDash will meet us at a pickup location," Schoolcraft said. "And we'll deliver the food to families that need it within the county. "

Schoolcraft said the food bank worked with the Mercer County Board of Education to determine which families would benefit the most. She added DoorDash drivers will be paid for their deliveries, and called it a win-win to increase job security in the region while helping families.

Schoolcraft said the food boxes will be tailored to individuals' household circumstances, noting that many families lack the resources to cook meals from scratch.

"For example, some families only have a microwave," she said. "So if that's the case, we'll only provide foods that are microwave centered, but they'll also receive fresh produce and proteins and dairies."

Esther Liew, the Lead Associate for Food Security Projects with Save the Children, said solutions to stop child hunger must come from within rural communities.

"What we're hoping is that they will be able to develop ways of working that maybe look a little bit different from how these similar types of programs would work in urban settings, Liew said. "So that we can help them to develop solutions that are specifically for rural contexts."

A recent survey by Save the Children and the Child Action Network found 77% of rural parents say they are worried they might not be able to afford enough food to feed their family.