What You Can Do if You Live in a Food Desert

Seven resources to look into

DINE

Sam Livingston

Jan 01 2021 | min read

Seven resources to look into

Information in this article first appeared on Eat This, Not That on October 2nd, 2019. Article cover image by Maud Remy-Lonvis. Another important resource on this topic this video from VICE News about what it’s like to live in a food desert and how food desserts began.

What is a food desert?

The USDA defines a low-access census tract for an urban area as one where at least 500 people or 33 percent of the population lives more than a half mile away from the closest supermarket, supercenter, or large grocery store.

For a rural area, 10 miles is the cutoff. Keep in mind, this measurement does not account for small food outlets like independent grocers. However, it's arguably the most comprehensive analysis of food deserts in the U.S. that's currently available.

This number of 23.5 million Americans does not take into account another very important factor. Aside from income and proximity to a store, you need access to a vehicle.

Having limitations to food access does not look the same for everyone, and there are many factors to consider, such as age, physical disabilities and the cost of living in certain areas. In other words, there are a lot of other barriers aside from the big three: income, proximity to a store and access to a vehicle.

Whether you need assistance or are in a position to help those in a food desert, there are resources for you to utilize and ways you can help fight food insecurity in your area.

To get started, here are seven resources you can use if you're in need of assistance.

One — see if you live near a community garden.

"During the growing months, if you have time and energy, you can participate in community gardens," says Anne Palmer (The Food Communities and Public Health program director at the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future). A community garden is a great way to make use of unused space and feed a community.

The American Community Garden Association provides resources for roughly 18,000 community gardens throughout the U.S. and Canada. The "Find a Garden" tool on their site helps you identify a community garden near you. Gardens can be found in both urban and rural areas.

In New York City, Harlem Grown works to increase both access and knowledge of healthy food to nearby residents. At Harlem Grown, children have the opportunity to get hands-on farming experience and learn about sustainability, urban agriculture, and even healthy cooking along the way.

Two — see if you're eligible for SNAP.

SNAP and WIC are two governmental programs that could assist you. Platkin points out that while these two sources may not always offer fresh produce, they will provide some sort of food if you and your family are at risk of being hungry. There are some farmers markets that accept food stamps and implement what's called the WIC Farmers' Market Nutrition Program. You can see which states participate here and use the USDA's National Farmers Market Directory to find the closest farmers market to you.

Three — see if your farmers market or food distributor donates leftover produce.

Nonprofit organization Gather Baltimore is an example of a group of volunteers that collects food that didn't sell at farmers markets and excess produce from distributors and local farms.

The Farmers Market Recovery Program by Food Forward is another organization that works to reduce food waste and distribute leftover food to those in need. Food Forward rescues food from 23 different farmers markets between Los Angeles and Ventura Counties. They rescue an average of 52,000 pounds of food per month and pass the food off to hunger relief agencies who then distribute the food to their clients within three days.

Four — see if your local food bank offers any additional support.

Second Harvest Food Bank in Silicon Valley works to reduce food waste from local distributors and puts that food toward pop-up farmers markets the food bank sets up at schools, community centers, and senior housing complexes. The cost of living in Santa Clara and San Mateo counties is very high. In these counties, Leslie Bacho, CEO of Second Harvest Food Bank, says that heads of households may be working multiple jobs just to make ends meet. For perspective, the department of housing and urban development (HUD) says that a family of four earning $94,450 a year or less in Santa Clara County or $117,400 a year or less in San Mateo County is considered low-income and could qualify them for food assistance. This illustrates just how different food insecurity looks across the nation.

"In many low-income neighborhoods, there's just not good access to groceries, and fresher items are more expensive," says Bacho. "For so many people we serve, there's not only the challenge of being able to afford the food that they need, there's a challenge of being able to afford fresh nutritious food."

The Southeast Ohio Food Bank in Logan, Ohio, offers a Summer Feeding Program to all children 18 years or younger, regardless of household income.

"Low-income families living in a food desert have a hard time supplying highly nutritious meals every day of the week. Often, we find that free school breakfasts and lunches are the only meals children can rely on during the week. When the school year ends, there's a significant meal gap during the summer months," says Andrew Mayle (Food and Nutrition Division director for Hocking Athens Perry Community Action in Ohio).

The Summer Feeding Program allows kids to receive one meal a day throughout the summer months at respective feeding sites. In addition, SE Ohio Foodbank also donates surplus produce from the Ohio Agricultural Clearance program, which accumulates produce from over 100 producers and growers in Ohio to families who visit the feeding sites.

"This allows them to take food home to prepare during the weekends when our feeding sites are not operating. We want to ensure that no child goes without a meal," says Mayle.

Five — see if mobile markets or food delivery services are an option.

There are several mobile markets operating throughout various parts of the U.S. For example, Twin Cities Mobile Market is a giant green bus that brings anything from fresh fruits and vegetables to grains, meat, and dairy products to various neighborhoods in Saint Paul and Minneapolis, Minnesota, and sells the items for an affordable price. This market also accepts SNAP.

Second Harvest Food Bank in Silicon Valley has 17 trucks that deliver food to those in need. About two years ago, the food bank teamed up with Starbucks to distribute even more fresh food. In Silicon Valley, 1 in 4 residents are at risk of hunger, 25 percent of which are families with children. Each night, Bacho says that employees of Second Harvest collect leftover grab-and-go items (such as the bistro boxes and breakfast sandwiches) from over 100 Starbucks in the area every night. This does not cost the clients receiving the food any money at all.

"Through this partnership, Starbucks actually provides a truck, a refrigerated truck, and they help cover the salaries of the drivers that go to these stores every night to pick up these items and they go directly to our partners that are homeless shelters," says Bacho. "It's a great way for Starbucks to reduce their waste and for people who could really use the food assistance to get some very high-quality items."

Meals on Wheels America is another service that delivers meals to those in need, specifically those who are 60 years of age and older. Jenny Young, the vice president of communications for Meals on Wheels America, says that the food delivery service operates in just about every community in the U.S. via a network of over 5,000 independently-run local programs. There are a lot of seniors in the U.S. who face hunger and isolation that need this service, regardless of whether they live in a food desert or not.

"Food insecurity remains a persistent challenge in the United States, with nearly 9 million older Americans not knowing where their next meal will come. Older adults face unique challenges when it comes to food security along [with] a continuum of need," Young writes in an email.

Young also says that food deserts only complicate this scenario further for seniors with limited mobility, because not only do they live in a low-access area, but they also are unable to travel far distances to go retrieve healthful foods.

"Meals on Wheels is designed to deliver nutritious meals to isolated seniors who may struggle with food security due to a number of reasons—whether they live in a food desert, a remote rural area, or simply cannot leave the house or prepare meals for themselves," says Young.

Six — visit a food pantry or food bank for "emergency food."

If you are in need of food, regardless of whether it provides fresh produce or not, a food pantry is another great resource to utilize. However, as both Platkin and Palmer address, emergency food assistance programs are only a short-term solution.

"It seems like people are depending on the food banks and food pantries to sustain their ability to eat in general, and that long-term sustainability is not what they're designed for," says Platkin. "People are consistently having to rely on food banks to feed themselves."

Palmer says something of similar nature: "I'm sure using emergency food resources only help to a certain extent."

While canned and packaged goods are typically the only foods available at food pantries, there are several thousand food pantries out there that do provide fresh and healthful options, too. For example, AmpleHarvest.org is a nonprofit resource that links 42 million Americans who grow food either in their own gardens or at community gardens to 8,444 registered food pantries nationwide. Gardeners donate their excess harvest to these pantries, which helps to reduce food waste and supply those who are hungry with the nutrition they need.

Seven — sign up for a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program.

Community Supported Agriculture programs provide members with a box of goods from nearby farms, including fresh, local produce and other farm products. CSA programs are not an option for everyone living in food deserts, though. These programs oftentimes require you to pick up your box of farm goods. Not to mention, it also costs money to receive such healthful produce straight from the farm. It's possible that community benefit programs can provide support to subsidize these boxes for families that cannot afford it otherwise. Local Harvest created a tool that helps you identify where the nearest CSA program is to you.

Please feel free to share this post with anyone who might benefit. Have a lovely day!