More than 140,000 Rhode Islanders will have another year of access to fresh produce discounts at select grocery stores thanks to funding in the state’s fiscal year 2027 budget.
Since Eat Well, Be Well debuted as a pilot program in January 2024, more than 100,000 households have received a total of around $10 million in benefits, according to an evaluation by the Rhode Island Public Health Institute). The program pays Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) beneficiaries 50 cents for every dollar they spend on fresh fruits and vegetables at participating retailers and automatically loads the rewards onto their Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) card, up to $25 a month.
The program was set to expire on June 30. But Eat Well, Be Well will now continue with $4.1 million allocated to the program in the fiscal year 2027 state budget, which took effect July 1…