Denver Human Services and Denver Botanic Gardens have a new partner in their effort to help people in some of the city's food deserts eat healthier.
DHS said in a statement Thursday that beginning July 12 the SAME Café Food Truck will be at the farm stand operated by DHS and the Gardens at the Richard T. Castro Human Services Center at 1200 Federal Blvd. on the second and fourth Fridays of the month from 9:30 a.m. to noon. The mobile SAME Café also will be at the farm stand at the Arie P. Taylor Municipal Office Building at 4685 Peoria St. the first and third Friday from 1 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
DHS and the Gardens have distributed thousands of pounds of fresh produce in the five years they have been partners in the Farm Stand program. Produce grown at the Gardens' Chatfield Farm in partnership with the Veterans to Farmers program as well as organic fruit from the Western Slope, free-range eggs, and other goods are sold at the stands at the Castro and Taylor buildings every Friday through October. The farm stands are already up and running this year.
Anyone can shop at the stands. If you use a SNAP card, you can get discounts that include Double Up Food Bucks, which provide an extra dollar for every dollar spent up to $20 a visit for Colorado-grown fruits and vegetables.
The food truck is a new project of SAME Café and follows the East Colfax restaurant's pay-what-you-can model and healthy menus. Under federal guidelines, SNAP benefits can't be used for prepared food, so the truck won't be accepting SNAP at the farm stands. The truck will be at the stands through their season.
