community Impacts
Explore the impact of the DA BUX program on Hawaiʻi's communities with real stories and insights from SNAP shoppers on Maui, Oʻahu, and the Big Island.
By Robert Munoz
DA BUX Communications Specialist
March 20, 2024
Maha Rafiq doesn’t mind making the 30-minute drive from Wailuku to Makawao just to visit Oko’a Farms on Maui.
At Oko’a Farms, Rafiq can save money on her fruits and vegetables through the DA BUX program. DA BUX offers those participating in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as food stamps, a 50% discount on Hawaiʻi-grown fruits and vegetables at 59 partner retailers statewide. Oko’a Farms is one of seven DA BUX retailers on Maui.
The food hub offers an array of high-quality produce, and Rafiq takes advantage of the opportunity to double her purchasing power as often as she can.
“(DA BUX) has helped me to make beautiful food in ways that I haven’t been able to prepare before because often times in the big box stores it’s simply not the best quality and I can’t afford it,” said Rafiq, who receives about $250 in DA BUX discounts per month. “The DA BUX program has definitely changed a lot for me, and I just enjoy life knowing I’m not scared of how I’m going to eat next.”
“The DA BUX program has definitely changed a lot for me, and I just enjoy life knowing I’m not scared of how I’m going to eat next.”
The impacts from DA BUX don’t stop at a personal level, however. They trickle into the community.
“The DA BUX impact on my Maui community has been really profound … families come together,” she said. “When the stress of not knowing where that good, nourishing meal will come from is taken away, it gives everybody more time to enjoy each other’s company.”
Brianna Nguyen and her family of four regularly visit Keauhou Farmers Market on the Big Island, which is the only farmers market on the Big Island that partners with DA BUX. One of the reasons they visit the market is to utilize the DA BUX program.
It’s also an opportunity for her family to spend time together and purchase their favorite, fresh local, fruits and vegetables.
“You just have a great day with your family (at the market),” Nguyen said. “You’re building time with your family. It’s so much bigger than food. It really does help people and the community.
“It means so much to me that DA BUX has made it feasible, and that I can feed (my children) while they’re living in paradise.”
“You’re building time with your family. It’s so much bigger than food. It really does help people and the community.”
There are many others who are seeing the positive impacts the DA BUX program can have on their health. Dara Sabri and his guardian/mother, Kit Kurtz, have been visiting Keauhou Farmers Market for at least 10 years. Since using DA BUX, there has been a significant change in Sabri’s diet.
“DA BUX has made a huge impact. I have seen the diet change because 80% of the diet is fruits and vegetables,” Kurtz said. “It’s a wonderful program and it really enables (Sabri’s) SNAP dollars to go much further.
Not only does DA BUX bring people together and help them eat healthier, but it helps many individuals and families overcome the barrier of affording local produce while they’re worrying about other costs. Saving any amount of money can help.
“Hawaiʻi is a difficult state to live in. So many of our folks have to move off island because they can’t afford it,” Kurtz said. “And programs like DA BUX help keep them here.”
“Hawaiʻi is a difficult state to live in... and programs like DA BUX help keep them here.”
Learn more about DA BUX
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