Gorge Grown Food Network | Veggie Rx Project

Veggie Rx Program

Gorge Grown’s Veggie Rx is a fruit and vegetable prescription program designed to address food insecurity and increase intake of fresh produce. The program empowers health care and social services providers to ‘prescribe’ vouchers to community members who screen positive for food insecurity (hunger). Vouchers can then be used to purchase fresh fruit and vegetables at farmers markets and grocery stores.

How did Veggie Rx come about?

Recently, the Columbia Gorge Health Council’s Community Food Survey revealed epidemic hunger throughout all 5 counties of the Gorge. Two discerning results that we learned:

1 in 3 Gorge residents worry about running out of food
1 in 5 Gorge residents miss meals regularly

Gorge Grown and partners sprung into action with Veggie Rx — a program that is quickly becoming a national model for bridging health care, non-profit and food system sectors.

How does it work?

Citizens are screened by participating health care and social service providers. If they suffer from hunger, they are given a packet of vouchers worth $30 for one month to redeem at any one of 30 local groceries, farms stands, or farmers markets. This provides direct access to healthy, local produce to those that need it most while strengthening our economy by keeping dollars local.

Who is eligible to receive a Veggie Rx prescription?

Anyone that has screened positive for food insecurity by answering “yes” to either or both of the following screening questions:

In the last 12 months, did you and the people you live with worry that you would run out of food before you were able to get more?
In the last 12 months did you and the people you live with run out of food before you were able to get more?

Where can the Veggie Rx prescriptions be redeemed?

Redemption sites change throughout the year depending on the season. Please see the list of current redemption sites listed in each packet of vouchers. Redemptions sites include:

All Gorge Farmers Markets during market season and participating farm stands including Mt. View Orchards, Cody Orchards Farm Stand, Kiyokawa Orchards, Evan’s Fruit Stand, and Maryhill Fruit Stand.

Hood River (winter) : Hood River Farmers Market, Rosauers, Mercado Guadalajara, Farm Stand, Mothers’s Marketplace

The Dalles (winter): Grocery Outlet, La Michoacana, Allan’s Food Center

Stevenson (winter): A&J Select Market

Carson: Carson General Store

Goldendale (winter): Holcomb’s Market

White Salmon (winter): Harvest Market, Dickey Farms

Parkdale (winter): McIsaac’s Market

Odell (winter): Mid Valley Market

Klickitat: Canyon Market

Cascade Locks: Columbia Market

Dufur: Kramer’s Market

Maupin: Maupin Market