Food Deserts: A Case Study

1) As population in the U.S. has moved to more urban areas, and older grocery stores in urban areas have close, there has been a decrease in access to healthy food. Do a little research to learn about food access and food deserts. Also, learn some of the innovative responses that people are working on to increase access to healthy foods in urban areas. Make sure to provide links to what you find.

As of 2013 around 23.5 million people are considered to live in food deserts according to the USDA. Over half of those people are low-income residents and statistically low-income zip codes have 25% fewer supermarkets, limiting their access to healthier food options. A few solutions to food deserts that are popping up are local garden initiatives, increase of healthier food options at convenience stores (there are 30% more convenience store in low-income zip codes than average) and mobile, pop-up produce markets. Many of these initiatives are in California but other areas are adopting the ideas as well. For instance, Indiana University has produce truck program called Garden on the Go and they accept food stamps. There are national efforts as well like the American Community Garden Association which “provides resources for over 18,000 community garden in the US and Canada.” The most obvious solution many would consider first is to just have more grocery stores open and there are some ideas encouraging this as well. One example is Fresh Works, a public-private partnership loan fund providing loans and grants to grocers willing to invest in underserved neighborhoods.

Also, learn about food waste in the U.S. compared to other countries. What are some of the things people are doing in an effort to minimize food waste? As always, provide