Glossary
We use a lot of acronyms and terms that you may not be familiar with. Use this glossary to figure out what they mean!
A-F
Cash Value Voucher (CVV)
Term used in some other states for the Fruit & Vegetable Check (FVC) program.
Delivery Route/Mobile Market
A business with more than 50% of their sales delivered is considered a Delivery Route according to USDA. This includes:
- DMFs whose primary mode of business is CSA shares that are delivered will be considered a delivery route.
- Non-DMF businesses that buy in products and re-sell to the public and their primary way of distributing the product is by delivery.
Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT)
A card similar to a debit card that SNAP recipients use to purchase eligible SNAP items. Benefits are automatically credited into the card by the federal government each month for recipients to use.
Because it works similar to a credit card, it requires a card-reader machine to complete transactions. We highly recommend utilizing wireless equipment at farmers markets due to a lack of landlines and electricity.
eIncentives
Electronic incentives eliminates the need to use tokens at the farmers market by allowing beneficiaries to use the myMarketLink app to complete transactions directly with farmers.
MarketLink is currently helping interested states and programs integrate their eWIC system with TIMS and myMarketLink app.
eFMNP
Electronic Farmers Market Nutrition Programs for Senior and WIC allows beneficiaires to purchase FMNP eligible foods by a smart device instead of vouchers.
MarketLink is currently helping interested states integrate their eWIC system with TIMS and myMarketLink app.
eWIC
The federal Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women and Children (WIC) is transitioning from a paper voucher system to Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) system. This means WIC participants can purchase WIC foods using an Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) card called eWIC.
MarketLink is currently helping interested states integrate their eWIC system with the TotilPay Incentive Management System (TIMS) and myMarketLink app.
Farmers Market Nutrition Programs (FMNP)
Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program: grant program by USDA for state agencies to issue checks for low-income Women, Infants, Children (WIC-FMNP) & Seniors age 60+ (Seniors FMNP) to purchase fresh fruits & vegetables at farmers’ markets.
Food & Nutrition Services (FNS)
A program of the USDA which aims to increase food security and reduce hunger by providing children and low-income people access to food, a healthful diet and nutrition education in a way that supports American agriculture and inspires public confidence.
FNS is responsible for reviewing and approving all SNAP retailer applications.
FNS Number
An authorization number retailers receive once they complete the SNAP Retailer Application. Once approved you will receive a permit with your FNS number on it. Please keep this in a safe place, it will be used to setup your merchant account through TotilPay.
Learn more
Fruit & Vegetable Checks (FVC)
A WIC program that issues checks to purchase fresh produce that may be accepted at farmers markets.
G-N
GrownBy
An e-Commerce platform that is currently MarketLink’s technology partner for the SNAP Online grant. It is a project of the Farm Generations Cooperative, which is a national agricultural cooperative that brings farmer-owners together to creatively solve business challenges.
Incentive Programs
Programs at farmers markets that provide incentives for federal nutrition benefit program participants to use these instruments; they are often in the form of matching so that participants can increase how much they can spend at market. These are usually administered with grant funding so vary by market, and are also known by terms like double value coupon program (DVCP), matching, double dollar, Fresh Checks, etc.
Loyalty Program
The MarketLink Team is developing options for farmers and markets to develop and track individualized loyalty programs for customers.
MarketLink
A program of the Farmers Food Assistance Bureau that is modernizing direct marketing farmers (DMFs) and farmers markets’ (FMs) methods of accepting Federal Nutrition Assistance Program benefits and incentive programs through electronic payments, simple data management, and quick and secure payments.
Merchant Account
Processing accounts for accepting SNAP/EBT and Credit/Debit payments. For our grants, TotilPay is the SNAP/EBT processor and Worldpay OR Square are the Credit/Debit processing options. Lastly, GrownBy is the USDA approved e-Commerce platform for SNAP Online that is available for direct-marketing farmers.
Meat/Poultry Market
A business that buys in meat produced by other farmers and resells at a fixed location.
National Association of Farmers’ Market Nutrition Programs (NAFMNP)
NAFMNP is currently the only nonprofit that links States, the District of Columbia, Indian Tribal Organizations, Territories and others with a stake in USDA’s Farmers’ Market Nutrition Programs (including local fruit and vegetable growers and low-income families and seniors).
Novo Dia Group (NDG)
Technology services and software development company that built the TotilPay platform.
Novo Dia Group is no longer operating. All operations of TotilPay’s technology to enable farmers markets and small non-traditional retailers the ability to process WIC, SNAP/EBT Credit/Debit transactions are now under the management of FFAB.
O-S
Online Store Application (OSA)
The term that USDA FNS uses to refer to the online application to become an authorized retailer to accept SNAP.
Over The Counter (OTC)
Health program providers in specific states are allowing health plan members to use benefit dollars to purchase eligible food products such as fruits, vegetables, eggs, milk, and more.
Point-of-sales (POS)
Reference to the location where the transaction takes place, so a machine that accepts EBT may be referred to as “POS terminal” at the farmers market.
Printer Waiver
The SNAP program has been federally mandated to require printed receipts for SNAP transactions. However, the USDA has provided a “printed-receipt” waiver for MarketLink customers, which means that if you get equipment through our grant program you do not need to provide a printed receipt. Instead, customers will be offered a text or email receipt. This printed receipt waiver will last through the lifetime of the grant (until September 30, 2023), at which point you may need to purchase a printer.
If you want or need to print receipts, a printer is available for purchase from TotilPay.
Produce Market
In the SNAP Retailer Authorization application, the term “Produce Market” corresponds to the USDA category “Specialty Food Stores – Fruits/Vegetables.” According to the USDA, this refers to food stores that primarily sell fruits and/or vegetables and operate in a fixed or semi-permanent location. This includes permanent produce stores, seasonal produce stands, and produce vendors not classified as Direct Marketing farmers or affiliated with farmers markets. These stores may carry other food or non-food items, but such products are secondary to their primary focus on fruits and vegetables.
Seafood Market
A business that buys in seafood caught/grown by others and resells at a fixed location.
SNAP
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (formally known as food stamps) provides nutrition benefits to supplement the food budget of needy families so they can purchase healthy food and move towards self-sufficiency. Widely referred to as SNAP/EBT.
SNAP Online
Through SNAP Online, SNAP recipients are able to use their benefits to purchase eligible food items online at specific retailers. MarketLink’s SNAP Online grant is specifically to support direct market farmers to accept SNAP transactions online.
Square
A Credit/Debit processing company. Square processing can be integrated into the TotilPay Go app to have all types of mobile payments processed in one app.
T-W
TotilPay Go (TPG)
TotilPay is the payment processing platform that powers MarketLink’s services. Designed and developed by a team of retail payment processing experts, TotilPay simplifies EBT acceptance at the point of sale—making it as easy as any other payment method. TotilPay’s mission is simple: to make accepting SNAP and other benefit programs effortless, so farmers, markets, and mobile vendors can focus on what matters most—growing their business and feeding their communities.
TotilPay offers an integrated EBT software that allows merchants and mobile vendors to process USDA -compliant and accurate transactions on a single device. Through the MarketLink program, eligible DMFs and FMs receive a free TotilPay Go subscription for at least one year. The system is also available for other merchants including grocery stores, bodegas, and mobile vendors.
TPG is now under the management of the Farmers Food Assistance Bureau (FFAB).
TotilPay Incentive Management System (TIMS)
TIMS is a collection of systems and interfaces that allows modernization of paper-based programs. This means improved program management and quicker benefit issuance. TIMS is now under the management of the Farmers Food Assistance Bureau (FFAB).
WIC
The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) provides federal grants to states for supplemental foods, health care referrals, and nutrition education for low-income pregnant, breastfeeding, and non-breastfeeding postpartum women, and to infants and children up to age 5 who are found to be at nutritional risk.
WorldPay
A Credit/Debit processing company. Worldpay is integrated into the TotilPay Go app to have all payments processed in one app.