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Doubling Food Access and Farmer Sales at Red River Gorge Farmers Market

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Building Community Resilience, One Market at a Time: Red River Gorge Farmers Market and Kentucky Double Dollars

When the Red River Gorge Farmers Market (RRGFM) opened in 2019, it began with a vision: grow a farmers market that not only serves the local community, but strengthens the people growing the food. Nestled in Slade, Kentucky, a region better known for its natural beauty than access to fresh produce, the market became a gathering space and a lifeline.

But like many small rural markets, RRGFM faced a challenge: How do you serve a low-income community while still sustaining your vendors?

That’s where the Kentucky Double Dollars (KDD) program made a difference.

Meeting the Moment

In 2023, as RRGFM planned for its third season, the team applied to join the KDD program, which matches SNAP, WIC, and Senior nutrition benefits for fresh fruits, vegetables, meats, and more. They were accepted, and immediately began the work of onboarding vendors, setting up outreach, and integrating the program into market operations.

Fast forward to 2025—now in their fifth season and third year as a KDD market—and the results speak volumes. Sales are up. Farmer participation is strong. And most importantly, more people in the community are able to access the food they want to eat.

As Market Leader Jann Knappage puts it:

“I see KDD as a program that helps bolster community resilience while making the work of small-scale growers more sustainable. It’s about neighbors supporting neighbors.”

Shared Success

In 2025, RRGFM offered multiple KDD-eligible products—from fruits and vegetables to meats, eggs, and dairy—through SNAP and other KDD matching. This not only gave customers more choices, it also helped farmer vendors expand their income, improve predictability, and feel more invested in the long-term viability of the market.

The market used KDD not just as a financial tool, but as part of a broader strategy to center food access and farmer well-being together.

  • Customers using SNAP, Senior Nutrition, and WIC could stretch their dollars
  • Farmers could sell more of what they grow, knowing their customers could afford it
  • The market could measure impact, helping to secure local support and funding

This is the power of KDD—not a one-time boost, but a platform that markets can build from.

A Note of Thanks

This success story was possible because of collaboration—from the farmers and organizers on the ground to the funders who believe in long-term investment in local food systems.

CFA and RRGFM extend deep thanks to:

  • USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA)
  • Kentucky Agricultural Development Fund
  • Foundation for Appalachian Kentucky
  • Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky

And individual supporters—people like you, who believe in the future of Kentucky’s farmers and communities.

What’s Next

As markets across Kentucky prepare for 2026, stories like Red River Gorge show what’s possible when markets are trusted with resources, and farmers are seen as key players in food access work—not just producers, but community leaders.

Programs like KDD don’t just grow sales—they grow stability. They grow relationships, and they grow a food system rooted in dignity.

Want to support markets like Red River Gorge and help expand KDD across the state? Become a member of CFA today!

Become a member of CFA
Learn More about Kentucky Double dollars

Newsletters

2019 Fall Newsletter: Staff on the Move

CFA Admin

FEDERATION OF SOUTHERN COOPERATIVES GATHERING


CFA Staff Tiffany Bellfield and Nathan Flynn traveled to Epes, Alabama in August for the Federation of Southern Cooperatives Gathering. CFA Board Chair, Wayne Riley, and his wife Salena, accompanied our staff there to represent the organization. They traveled with folks from Kentucky State University, where Tiffany shares this reflection “the KSU bus was filled with black people who were connected to both KSU and Kentucky agriculture. Many great conversations around black cooperatives and the image of Kentucky Ag. I had no idea the journey I was beginning.”   

Upon arrival, Nathan and Tiffany really had no idea what to expect. Tiffany says “We socialized and began building relationships that Friday. I met folk that knew my family, all the way in Epes, Alabama. The way people gather and talk from the south is like going to school, I was getting educated. It was so interesting to see how different region’s view local food systems and farm to table, even down to the way we describe our products.”  Saturday began “with praise and worship, thanking God for our growth. Then we went into the dedication and remembrance of Sister Mattie Mack, The Queen of the Federation. Also, a grand elder of Kentucky black agriculture” and long-time CFA supporter and advocate. All happening before my time, and others at CFA, we had no idea. Outside of Mattie Mack, Kentucky was never mentioned the whole weekend. I questioned why aren’t we being acknowledged? I came to find out that when “Mattie Mack became sick, our connection as an organization to the Federation, also faded. The Kentucky Minority Farmers Inc. Cooperation also ceased to exist formally. I sat and listened as framework was voted on, Kentucky not being able to participate beyond discussion. I kept thinking about this through a larger lens: this is symbolic of black agriculture in Kentucky. Lost, confused, displaced, and searching for the remains of our elders’ teachings and power. I also was reminded that there are not a lot of us who are making it our mission to save black land, black farms, and black businesses. It’s truly up to us.”  

 

FARM AID 2019

Another season in the books, another Farm Aid on the stage. On September 21st, for the 34th time Willie Nelson and company rocked a crowd of 36,000 people, gathered to raise support and awareness for family farmers across the nation. CFA staff Cathryn Forester and Nathan Flynn traveled 10 hours with CFA Leaders Anne Bays and James Barrett to support family farmers at the Alpine Valley Music Theater in East Troy, Wisconsin. Having been partners with Farm Aid since it’s inception, CFA participated in the “HOMEGROWN Village” with dozens of organizations across the country, including Farmers Market Coalition, National Family Farm Coalition, and the Wisconsin Farmers Union. If Farm Aid’s stage is the heart of Farm Aid, the HOMEGROWN Village is the hands! While large topics of interest were soil health, water access, and the future of Wisconsin dairy, organizations were exhibiting about every aspect of our agriculture system. The ASPCA was advocating against large scale “factory farms”, Farmers Market Coalition urged people to shop at their local farmers market, and the American Psychological Association addressed stress and mental health in the farming community. Alongside these great exhibits was CFA with their “Farming is a Gamble” card game and exhibit. CFA staff used stories of real-life Kentucky farmers to highlight the risk associated with running a farm business, and how Kentucky farmers are rising to the occasion and changing the way we view our food system! Participants first chose a “Farmer” card and then a CFA card explaining the programs we create to help mitigate the risk associated with farming. After engaging with the festival goer and uplifting a dedicated Kentucky farm, the participant then rolled some dice and took the gamble themselves! Through this engaging game, we were able to spread awareness for Kentucky Agriculture and build relationships with agriculture organizations from across the country! Then we would snap a picture of the gambler with our “Farming is a Gamble” picture frame. Having been the first Farm Aid for all that went, we were shocked by the sheer volume of participants, and were busy engaging folks the whole day! The card game and frame were an absolute hit, especially among the youth. We noticed that although most of the farmers who came to Farm Aid were Wisconsin dairy farmers, they face most of the same threats that Kentucky farmers are facing in 2019. It reinforced the idea that in the farming community there is more that makes us similar than makes us different, and at an event like Farm Aid 2019, you can see the strength and support for the American family farm. Anne Bays, a cattle farmer from Whitley County, connected with Wisconsin cattle and dairy farmers and was quickly whisked away into farm talk after farm talk, and it was a joy to see. Cathryn Forester, APPAL-Tree field director in Harlan, KY, shared her work of the water first GoH20 program with Words For Water, a Wisconsin organization advocating and educating on water quality. And Nathan Flynn and James Barrett got to swap ideas and share stories with farmers market managers from around the region. You quickly realize that agriculture is a strong bond, and when we come together, we have an ability to effect real change in our food system. After the HOMEGROWN village closed, the CFA Squad was able to hit the lawn and listen to classics by the likes of Bonnie Raitt, Dave Mathews, John Mellencamp, Neil Young, and the fearless leader Willie Nelson. The sense of family was strong, and between sets, we bonded with a few dairy farmers as we tried to call out the different breeds of cow, and varieties of produce as pictures flashed on the screen! The music was special, the exhibits powerful, but the moment of the night came from Neil Young “If you’re enjoying the concert tonight, never drive by a farmers market again without stopping”. He continually reminded the crowd that it’s not enough to just care, it’s not enough to just go to a charity concert, that we inspire change in our society by first inspiring change within ourselves. We must live the mission, and we must support the family farm in practice. Oh, and if you’re wondering, Neil Young still sang Heart of Gold like he was 27. He still has it.