BrainStuff Classics: What Are Food Deserts?

In the U.S., 17.6 million people lack access to healthy food because there aren't any grocery stores or other shops that sell fresh food nearby. Learn about food deserts and how we can fix them in this classic episode of BrainStuff, based on this article: https://recipes.howstuffworks.com/americans-still-lack-access-to-healthy-food.htm

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):
Welcome to brain Stuff, a production of iHeart Radio. Hey
brain Stuff, Lauren vogle bomb here with a classic episode
from our archives. This one goes into the harsh realities
of the gaps in our food supply chain here in
the United States and what's being done to improve the situation.

(00:22):
Hey brain Stuff, Lauren voge bomb here. The United States
still struggles to feed people adequately. According to a new
analysis by the nonprofit organization Reinvestment Fund, seventeen point six
million Americans lack access to healthy food. It's not all
bad news. They analyzed limited supermarket areas or l says,

(00:43):
often called food deserts. Their analysis shows that in most states,
access to healthy food has improved overall during the past
several years. Even in states with significant population growth, such
as Florida and Arizona, the percentage of people who lived
in alisas decreased from six point eight percent in to
ten to five point six percent in twenty six. That

(01:03):
means three point one million people have better access to
fresh foods than they used to, but progress hasn't been
consistent across the country. Even though grocery stores aren't the
only places to get fresh food. Other retailers, including drug
stores and corner stores. Health experts note that food prices
at grocery stores are lower than those at smaller stores,

(01:23):
and that large clubs like Costco and Sam's typically require
membership fees that may be a barrier for some families. Plus,
when there are fewer grocery stores in a given area,
food prices are typically higher. Additionally, the analysis found that
ls as are disproportionately found in areas where the demographics
include more people with low incomes, people in poverty, and

(01:45):
people of color. For example, food access improved overall in
Rhode Island. The number of people living in alisas they're
dropped thirty eight percent between twenty and twenty sixteen, but
of Rhode Islands remaining ls A population is income residents.
Access to healthy food is key for good health and
quality of life. People who live in areas with poor

(02:07):
access to healthy food are fifty cent less likely to
have a good quality diet. In communities with good access
to healthy food, there's a reduced incidence of diabetes, for example.
Food access also impacts other health conditions, such as cardiovascular
disease and even some types of cancer. The Reinvestment Fund
analysis identifies low supermarket areas by looking at criteria such

(02:28):
as income, car ownership rates, and the distance to existing
grocery stores, making adjustments for differences in rural and urban areas. Still,
residents of LSAs travel almost twice as far to get
to grocery stores as residents in places with good access
to healthy food, even when there is a similar population
density and car ownership. Retailers typically place stores in areas

(02:51):
where there's enough demand to sustain operations, such as a
denser population with a higher income. Low income or rural
areas don't offer those characteristics to attract retailers without other incentives,
and in urban areas, retailers face barriers such as real
estate costs, limited parking space for customers, and traffic issues
which can make it hard for large trucks to enter

(03:13):
and make regular deliveries. The LSA analysis by the Reinvestment
Fund will help direct government assistance to communities to help
bring grocery stores and healthy food retailers to underserved communities
through the government's Healthy Food Financing Initiative. In the past
ten years, drug stores such as Walgreens have made efforts
to stock limited grocery items, including milk, eggs, and fruit

(03:35):
calling these efforts a food oasis to combat limited access
in food deserts, and some communities address food access through
grassroots efforts such as mobile grocery stores, community gardens, and
farmers markets. For example, in Chicago, and urban Farming program
that started back in seen with just a few acres
of land and a converted bus, served its ten thousand

(03:56):
customer as of August. The program called Fresh Moves Mobile
Market serves senior centers, schools, and other locations on Chicago's
South and West sides weekly, focusing specifically on areas with
no access to fresh foods. Today's episode is based on

(04:19):
the article seventeen point six million Americans still lack access
to healthy food on house toworks dot com, written by
Sean Chavis. Print Office production of I Heart Radio in
partnership with house to works dot Com and it's produced
by Tyler Klang. Four more podcasts from my heart Radio
visit the I heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever
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