On Saturday mornings, about 800 people stop at the Davidson Farmer's Market for fruit and vegetables, eggs or hormone- and antibiotic-free meats – all grown or produced within about 100 miles.
Although the market is approved to take debit cards from people who buy food with federal assistance, only one or two people with those benefits shop there.
Some 20 miles to the south, the Historic West End Market also is open Saturday mornings on West Trade Street near Johnson C. Smith University. It's one of 60 Mecklenburg neighborhoods where a recent study found fresh foods scarce in stores.
In these urban clusters, unlike Davidson, poverty and high unemployment make it more likely that shoppers will use benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly called food stamps. But at the West End Market, where organizers are still building a customer base in its second season, SNAP benefits aren't accepted for produce or the occasional fresh fish.
Source: Charlotte Observer
