A Mixed-Method Assessment of a New Supermarket in a Food Desert: Contributions to Everyday Life and Health

Abstract

Initiatives to build supermarkets in low-income areas with relatively poor access to large food retailers (Bfood deserts^) have been implemented at all levels of government, although evaluative studies have not found these projects to improve diet or weight status for shoppers. Though known to be influential, existing evaluations have neglected in-store social dynamics and shopper behaviors. Surveys and walking interviews were used with shoppers (n = 32) at a supermarket developed through the Pennsylvania Fresh Food Financing Initiative in Philadelphia, PA. Key informant interviews with stakeholders in the supermarket's development and operations provided additional context to these shopper experiences. Data were collected in July and September 2014 and qualitatively analyzed in NVivo 10.0. Participants described how the retailer helped them adapt or cope with difficult shopping routines and how it presented a reliable high-quality option (in terms of cleanliness, orderliness, and social atmosphere) in contrast to other neighborhood retailers. Health concerns were also identified, especially among those managing chronic disease for themselves or a family member. These issues underscored multiple points of challenge required to adjust shopping and eating behavior. In-store supports that reflect these challenges are warranted to more fully address food deserts and reduce health disparities.

“If you Build it with them, they will come”: What makes a supermarket intervention successful in a food desert?

“…Further, the health changes expected from introducing a supermarket into a food desert are predicated on usership. Community engagement helps foster such usership from the host community and may be important to shifting other aspects related to health such as shopping habits, eating habits, and diet (Chrisinger, ).…”

“…Future studies may wish to include a community governance framework for case studies to help better explain findings related to place-based economic development and health outcomes. It stands to reason that with communities invested in the planning, siting, and management process of a new supermarket, they will be more likely to Community engagement helps foster such usership from the host community and may be important to shifting other aspects related to health such as shopping habits, eating habits, and diet (Chrisinger, 2016b).…”

Health disparities: Using policies to rethink our strategies for eliminating the impact of food deserts by focusing on unhealthy dietary patterns

“…Several cities have conducted longitudinal studies, which have concluded similar outcomes. A study conducted in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania examined the impact of building a new supermarket in a low‐ income neighborhood (Chrisinger, ). After the supermarkets grand opening for just a few months, a majority of the neighborhood used the new supermarket for shopping.…”

“…Several cities have conducted longitudinal studies, which have concluded similar outcomes. A study conducted in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania examined the impact of building a new supermarket in a low-income neighborhood (Chrisinger, 2016).…”

Food Deserts and Real‐Estate‐Led Social Policy

“…The initiative is portrayed by the Administration, and others, as its cornerstone effort to eliminate food deserts (PolicyLink, The Reinvestment Fund and the Food Trust, 2016; US Department of Health and Human Services, 2011). Under both federal and state‐based programs, according to a national landscape assessment by Chrisinger (), over $500 million in public and tax‐privileged private funds has been committed since 2004 to the development or refinancing of 2.9 million square feet of supermarket retail space in low‐income neighborhoods. Chrisinger identifies 126 distinct projects across the country, 90 complete and 36 planned or in development.…”