“Food Deserts” are geographic areas where access to affordable, healthy food options (i.e. fresh fruits and vegetables) is restricted or nonexistent due to the absence of grocery stores within reasonable traveling distance.
According to a report by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, roughly 23.5 million Americans (8.4% of the population) live in low-income areas that are more than 1 mile from a supermarket or large grocery store. Many of these people lacking access to a car or some form of public transportation.
The prevalence of food deserts overwhelmingly impact low income, minority communities. Rural and urban.
In fact, wealthy districts have 3 times as many supermarkets as poor ones do. With white neighborhoods containing an average of 4 times as many supermarkets as predominantly black ones. In addition to fewer locations, grocery stores in African-American communities are typically smaller with less of a selection.
People living in these poorest areas not only have less access to grocery stores and other healthy food options. But these communities also have 2.5 times the exposure to fast-food restaurants as those living in the wealthiest areas.
People who live in areas with limited access are more prone to poor diets and poor health outcomes, such as obesity or diabetes, because they lack access to healthy foods and may have too easy access to less healthy foods.
For example, in Chicago, the death rate from diabetes in food deserts is twice that of areas with access to grocery stores.
Where stores choose to locate and operate are often driven solely by economic factors. For years, studies have considered the value consumers place on different neighborhoods amenities such as, availability of parks or the quality of public schools. Though there is a lack of data that examines the value consumers place on such amenities as supermarkets or restaurants.
Regardless, the prevalence of food deserts in the U.S. is a complex economic, social, and environmental issue that is unsustainable in the long-term.
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