Government shutdown forces local food access program to pause

The Marigold Collective in Winterville on the east side of Athens has paused a program that helps low-income residents access fresh food. Sarah Hovater is the executive director of the Marigold Collective, which works with statewide nonprofit Wholesome Wave Georgia to double people’s benefits when they buy eligible food.

“The Fresh for Less program is intended to get more fruits and vegetables into consumers’ diets, so the doubling is good for fruits and vegetables only,” she says.

Hovater says that because it is funded by federal grants that are distributed over time, the shutdown has frozen the program for now. About 20 people regularly use the program, she says, mostly elderly people without transportation.

She adds that Northeast Georgians can still access free food—or donate it—by