KANSAS CITY, MO. – On June 1, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City (Blue KC) is partnering with Cultivate KC to offer reduced-cost Lyft rides to local farmers markets. The program is part of Blue KC’s Well Stocked community impact program, which is dedicated to increasing access to nutritious food in underserved areas of Kansas City. Residents will be able to hail a Lyft from any location within the greater Kansas City area and receive $30 off their roundtrip to City Market or Overland Park Farmers’ Market. 

“We’re excited to launch this important initiative from our Well Stocked Program which supports increased access to healthy and nutritious foods during the summer months.” said Macaela Stephenson, Manager of Community Relations at Blue KC. “This farmers market program is a testament to the power of the partners that have joined our Well Stocked program, creating an incredible coalition dedicated to the goal that no person in our community suffer from hunger.”

Double Up Food Bucks offers matched dollars to SNAP EBT Card carriers and those qualified for SNAP on eligible purchases at the Farmer’s Markets. This initiative is also supported by Well Stocked partner, Cultivate KC, who manages the program at each of the Farmers Markets and works with farm vendors to ensure that SNAP users can redeem their match dollars for fruits and vegetables. “The Double Up Food Bucks program helps make nutritious and healthy foods affordable for our neighbors experiencing food insecurity, we’re grateful to Blue KC and all our Nutrition Incentive Program funders for their shared commitment to improving our community’s health,” said Katherine Kelly, Executive Director and Co-Founder of Cultivate KC. 

“The Double Up Food Bucks program increases the amount of healthy produce that food insecure individuals and families can buy and eat in a dignified shopping experience while also supporting local farms, It’s a benefit to the community as a whole.” said Katherine Kelly, executive director and co-founder of Cultivate KC. “We are grateful to Blue KC and Lyft as well as our Nutrition Incentive program funders for their shared commitment to improving the health of all our neighbors in Kansas City.”

Blue KC will issue a $30 credit event code to community members to visit the City Market (E 5th St) between 7 a.m. and 3 p.m. or the Overland Park Farmers’ Market (7950 Marty Street) between 7 a.m. and 1 p.m. on Saturday, June 1, 2019. The code can be used for rides to the farmers market of their choice. 

Follow these steps to claim your $30 credit toward a ride to one of the above Farmers’ Markets locations: 
•    Download the Lyft App on your smartphone device (iTunes App Store, Google Play App Store, Amazon App Store, or Microsoft App Store)
•    Create your profile.
•    Sign in and type in the address of the Farmers’ Market you’d like to visit. 
•    Select payment method from the drop-down menu.
•    Enter promo code BLUEKC30 to have the $30 credit applied to your ride!
•    Once you’ve arrived at the Farmers Market, visit the information tent for further instructions and information on Double Up Food Bucks. 

To learn more about Blue KC’s Well Stocked program, visit the Well Stocked webpage and follow Blue KC’s Facebook and Twitter for information about future events and opportunities to join the Well Stocked initiative.

About Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City, the largest not-for-profit health insurer in Missouri and the only not-for-profit commercial health insurer in Kansas City, has been part of the Kansas City community since 1938. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City provides health coverage services to more than one million residents in the greater Kansas City area, including Johnson and Wyandotte counties in Kansas and 30 counties in Northwest Missouri. Our mission: to provide affordable access to healthcare and to improve the health of our members. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. For more information on the company, visit its website at BlueKC.com.

About Cultivate KC
Cultivate KC is a locally-grown nonprofit working to food, farms and community in support of a sustainable and healthy local food system for all. Cultivate KC began in 2005 as the Kansas City Center for Urban Agriculture with the goal of promoting urban farming, the growing of food in city neighborhoods to feed other people. Today it serves as a resource provider and advocate to urban growers while also managing programs to promote local food and provide public education on sustainable agriculture. For more information, please visit www.cultivatekc.org.