Connecticut Department of Agriculture

Resources for Farmers

This page includes information on how to participate in an authorized farmers market, how to become FMNP certified, and how to process transactions with the SoliMarket Register application. 

If you are in need of assistance with your SoliSystem app please contact the SoliSystems Helpline at (214) 256-3083.

Participating in a Market

For farmers, farmers’ markets create the opportunity for direct sales, an expanded customer base, and higher on-farm attendance.  

Farmers growing fruits, vegetables, cut herbs, eggs, and honey and selling at a Certified Connecticut Grown farmers’ market are individually certified by the Connecticut Department of Agriculture to accept the electronic benefits as payment for fruits, vegetables, cut herbs, and honey. Farmers who want to participate in farmers’ markets should take a look at our Participating in Connecticut Farmers' Market page.  Information on how to establish a market in Connecticut should review our Establishing a Farmers Market in Connecticut. 

To accept FMNP WIC and senior electronic benefits, Connecticut fruit, vegetable, cut herb, eggs, and honey farmers must become certified to sell at an FMNP-authorized farmers' market.  Certification includes:

  1. Being accepted into a Certified Connecticut Grown farmers' market
  2. Complete an FMNP Certification training
  3. Submitting a crop plan (below) to the Connecticut Department of Agriculture
  4. Having the production area verified through a certification visit. The Department will contact you to schedule a visit.
  5. Signing a letter of agreement with the agency
  6. Gaining access to the Soli Market Register application on a tablet or smart device. Download the app for iOS here. Download the app for Android here. See the section titled, "SoliMarket Register" to learn to navigate the app.

e-License

When submitting your e-License application you will need to submit a crop plan. If you need assistance in navigating the e-License portal please use this guide. Below are two fillable PDF's to use depending on your farm operation. If you need 

Crop Plan Specialty Crop Plan


Reference Guides

For more information on Connecticut farmers’ markets and other supplemental food programs offered through farmers’ markets, please see the Farmers Market Reference Guide. This document is updated on an annual basis or as needed. 

For more information about the S/FMNP timeline, program requirements, rules and regulations, and check lists view the Farmers' Certification Handbook.

If you need assistance in navigating e-License to submit your crop plan and license need for FMNP please see the how-to guide on use of e-License for Fruit and Vegetable Growers (FVG).

SoliMarket Register 

What is SoliMarket

SoliMarket is a digital payment and administration solution designed to serve Farmers' Markets and State Health Services that manage them within the United States. SoliMarket has digitized the traditional paper-check voucher system of the Farmers Market Nutrition Program (FMNP) and Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program (SFMNP) that provide food benefits for participants who qualify for WIC benefits and State Senior Programs.

The SoliMarket Register application is used by Farmers with a SoliMarket account to sell fruits/vegetables, herbs, and honey at Farmers' Markets within the SoliMarket system. The Shopper application is used by FMNP and SFMNP Participants who qualify for benefits to be used at Farmer's Markets. The two applications are used together to fulfill transactions between the Farmers and Participants. In some cases (typically for Seniors), a Shopper Card is used in place of the SoliMarket Shopper mobile application.

The SoliMarket system is managed through online via the Farmer Portal which is used by Farmers to monitor transaction activity for their Farm, add/change banking information for remittance, and create Cashier users.

Soli Market Register Transactions

App-to-App Transaction
Card-to-App Transaction

Setting up a new SoliMarket Register account

  1. A staff member from the state administration, or SoliSYSTEMS will create a farm account for you through a web portal. To start this process, the staff member will need the farmer’s full name, email address, phone number, and farm name and the farm code (issued by the state). This information was collected at the farmer certification meeting if you were in attendance.

  2. Once the farm account is created, the farmer will receive an email from noreply@soliportal.com. (Note: If you do not see this email within a few minutes after account creation, check your email’s spam and junk folders.)

  3. Open the SoliMarket Register application on your mobile device and log in using your email and the temporary password as seen on the email.

  4. Upon logging in for the first time, you will need to create a new password. The new password must be at least 8 characters long and include at least one capital letter, lowercase letter, number, and symbol (example: Password23!)

  5. Once the new password is created, select the market you will be operating from. (Note: This can be changed later if you sell at multiple markets.)

  6. Your SoliMarket Register application is now ready to take transactions!

Processing Transactions with SoliMarket Register

Below are instructions for conducting transactions between the SoliMarket Register and SoliMarket Shopper mobile applications. For instructions on Shopper Card transactions, click here.

Transaction Instructions: App to App

The following section includes step-by-step instructions on conducting a transaction between the SoliMarket Register and mobile applications.

1. On both applications, tap on the Checkout icon at the bottom of the screens. 

2. The Shopper app will generate a QR code for the Register app to scan. Use your phone’s camera to scan the QR code and initiate a transaction.

Note: The first time you perform a transaction, the app will ask you for permission to use the camera. You must allow the app to use your camera for you to initiate a transaction. If you accidentally deny access, you can enter your phone’s Privacy Settings and grant permission there.

3. Once the QR code is scanned, the account benefit balance will appear on the screen. 

Note: If the Participant does not have any benefits remaining on their Card, a message will appear that says “Insufficient balance to proceed.”

4. If you wish to continue with the transaction, tap on PROCEED. (Note: To  cancel the transaction at this point, click on BACK.)

5. The details of the transaction can now be entered into the Register app. To build the basket from this screen:

a. Select the category for the item by tapping on the appropriate icon.

Note: There are 3 possible categories depending on the Programs you are eligible to sell for: Fruits & Vegetables, Herbs, and Honey.

b. Enter the item’s price by typing it into the text box and tapping the +ADD button OR the “Done” button on the keypad.

**NOTES**

The decimal point is now auto-populated when entering the transaction amount. This will safeguard users from accidentally charging too much for a transaction when entering an amount. Always review the total amount being charged to ensure that the Shopper is being charged correctly before proceeding.

While the keypad is shown on the screen, tapping the “+ADD” button will collapse the keypad first; once the keypad is collapsed, you must click “+ADD” again to add the item to the basket. If you tap “Done” above the keypad instead, the item will be added to the basket automatically and the keypad will collapse.

6. If you’d like to remove an item from the basket after adding it, you can tap the v icon next to the basket total and then tap the X next to the item you’d like to remove. A trashcan icon will then appear to confirm that you’d like to remove the item from the basket.

7. Once all the items for the transaction have been successfully added, tap the CONTINUE button.

8. For card-to-app transactions, the utilization receipt and PIN Entry screens have been combined into one. Once finished building the basket, show the Utilization Receipt screen to the shopper for them to review the transaction details and enter their PIN.

9. Once the PIN has been entered correctly, the transaction will complete. If the Participant enters their PIN incorrectly, they will be prompted with a message to try again.

Note: The final confirmation screen may take up to 5-10 seconds to appear depending on network traffic and the mobile device’s connectivity strength.