Showing posts with label Food desert. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Food desert. Show all posts

Friday, September 26, 2014

Food Caravans: Why Birmingham Alabama is Putting Produce Markets on Wheels

by Nomad

The city of Birmingham, Alabama is trying out an urban project to bring healthy food to neighborhoods in need. 

In past blog posts we have taken a look at the problem of "food deserts." Where deserts are places with limited water or limited access to whatever water is there, food deserts are  areas where residents may not have access to affordable and healthy food options. 
That's particularly true when it comes to the healthy alternatives (fresh fruit and vegetables).   
According to a report prepared for Congress by the Economic Research Service of the US Department of Agriculture, about 2.3 million people (or 2.2 percent of all US households) live more than one mile away from a supermarket and do not own a car.
There's no mistaking it. The problem cuts down racial and class lines. Food deserts can be most generally found in communities of color and low-income areas (where many people don't have cars). 

In contrast, wealthier parts of town, studies tell us, have three times as many supermarkets as poor areas. And white neighborhoods have on average up to four times as many supermarkets as black neighborhoods. To make matters worse, grocery stores in African-American communities are usually smaller with less selection. 
It's only a slight exaggeration to say that in some poorer sections of urban America,  it could be easier to buy illegal drugs than to find a healthy meal for a family.
So, that's the problem, but what are the solutions?  

Birmingham's Bright Idea
Well, the city of Birmingham, Alabama has approved of a innovative plan to bring the food to those who most need it. 
The board of supervisors for the Birmingham-Jefferson County Transit Authority (BJCTA) has approved of the city's plan to create so-called "mobile food markets."