Community Development and the Influence of New Food Retail Sources on the Price and Availability of Nutritious Food

Abstract

Studies have demonstrated links between the accessibility of food and multiple health outcomes. Policymakers engaged in local community development may use public health concerns as a strategy to procure funding for food retail initiatives. Few studies to date have demonstrated the impact that a new food retailer can have on geographic and economic access to nutritious food in a community, evidence which could support the case for new food retail. This paper examines the price and availability of food before and after the opening of two new grocery stores in a former food desert in Flint, Michigan. The results indicate a substantial improvement in both geographic and economic food accessibility, and show no statistical difference between prices at average grocery stores and the new stores. Discussion suggests that investment in poorer neighborhoods can be beneficial to the local population and the community at large by creating a local multiplier effect through increased spending in the community.

A Food Retail-Based Intervention on Food Security and Consumption

“…Initially, very few residents in Carriage Town could walk to a grocery store, and low-mobility residents would have experienced difficulty in accessing healthy food, but the opening of Witherbee’s nullified this geographic disparity [41]. From a research and public health standpoint, the impending change in the food retail landscape presented an opportunity to evaluate a natural experiment and determine whether the opening of the market would influence residents’ consumption habits or food security.…”

Theoretical issues in the ‘food desert’ debate and ways forward

“…As measured in consumption of fruits and vegetables, healthy food consumption did not change before and after the store opening: consumption was steady at 2.6 servings per day compared to the control group, which saw an increase from 2.5 to 2.9 servings per day. Follow-up interviews with stakeholders indicated a variety of speculative reasons for the store's lack of effectiveness, including a lack of engagement with the community (including a lack of educational programs), a lack of knowledge about the local market potential for healthy food (a farmers' market operates 3 days a week in the same neighborhood- Sadler et al 2013c), and a lack of advertising (Sadler et al 2013a;Sadler et al 2014). Furthermore, the store closed within 2 years of opening, lending further credence to the notion that the store did not engage effectively with the consumer demographic.…”

An Economic Impact Comparative Analysis of Farmers' Markets in Michigan and Ontario

“…The general result that proximity to the market increases the likelihood of shopping for general groceries suggests that for each community, its market serves a primary function as a supplement to grocery stores rather than a "boutique market," particularly for residents within walking distance. This is important because in each community, the distressed neighborhoods immediately adjacent to the markets do not have grocery stores and have otherwise been classified as "food deserts" (Larsen & Gilliland, 2009;Sadler et al, 2012).…”

“…Using this data and the spatial join function in ArcGIS, respondents can be classified by level of the socioeconomic distress within their neighborhood to determine whether the customer profiles at each market are inclusive of disadvantaged populations. Indices for Flint and London compiled for past research (Larsen & Gilliland, 2009;Sadler et al, 2012) have been recreated for this research.…”