Economic Issues Surrounding The Food And Food Accessibility

Food deserts are places where healthy foods are not produced nor sold. Unfortunately, Chicago is filled with food deserts. Approximately 600,000 people reside in areas that consist of food deserts (Gallagher, 2006). Nearly 200,000 of those people are children. These children do not have the opportunity for healthier options, which shows an increase in obesity rates (News One Staff, 2011). There are 77 Chicago communities and out of that 77, 23 are food deserts (Gallagher, 2006). Chicagoans-particularly the black communities- are forced to live off the accessible food that is near them. The food deserts are in Austin, North Lawndale, Armour Square, Near South Side, Fuller Park, Grand Boulevard, Washington Park, Woodlawn, West Lawn, Chicago Lawn, Englewood, Ashburn,

For centuries, the United States has been seen as a food and food-product paradise; with a constant bombardment of daily specials, “two-for-one” deals, and never ending combo options oozing from every corner of the food-scape. For many Americans, over indulgence is a frequent occurrence-studies show more than 50% of adults say they eat out at least once a week (“58% Eat at A Restaurant”, 2013). Even in this scene of gluttony, the poverty stricken and systematically oppressed find themselves in food deserts across The States; that’s more than 45 million Americans without access to healthy, reasonably priced foodstuffs. Of this group of 45 million, the African American community holds the seat for the highest poverty rate among various racial and ethnic groups at an astounding 26.2% in 2014 (DeNavas-Walt, 2015).

A food desert is a location in which a wide variety of nutrition food is not generally available (Wrigley et al. 261). Food deserts exist in places such as inner cities and isolated rural areas (Morton and Blanchard 1). Food deserts do not exist because of unfairness against the poor, but because of constraints related to supply and demand. Even though based on the statement that food deserts contain a preponderance of unhealthy food; because such food is all people in food deserts have to choose from is an unsupported statement. The main implication of this conclusion is that the answer to the food deserts is not for the government to interfere with the economics of the food business, but, rather, for both public and private forces to facilitate the development of change in how the poor view and consume food.

Many areas in the United States contain an abundance of neighborhoods that function with little to no healthy food sources nearby because of the large number of people in poverty. With the fleeing number of locally owned grocery stores and convenient fast food restaurants sprouting in urban and rural areas, residents do not have an adequate quantity of fruits and vegetables readily available. The City of Baltimore defines a food desert as “an area where the distance to a supermarket is more than one quarter of a mile; the median household income is at or below 185 percent of the Federal Poverty Level; over 30 percent of households have no vehicle available; and the average Healthy Food Availability Index score [convenience stores, corner stores, and supermarkets] is low” (Food Deserts). Baltimore City today “ranks second among similarly sized cities for the number of low-income people living in food insecure areas” (Freishtat, 2014). Leaving eight percent of white Baltimoreans living in food deserts compared to the 35 percent of black Baltimoreans, and 30 percent of children living in food deserts in Baltimore alone (Buczynski, 2015).

Research shows that government-sponsored programs aiming to expand access to healthy food options and reduce levels of obesity are ineffective. These policies emphasize accessibility in terms of location and proximity but fail to encourage consumption of healthy foods or reduce levels of obesity among low-income families (Copari, 2014). The analysis through policy lens illustrates the government's role and the inability to address the underlying causes of food deserts that result in the policies that disregard equity and focus on promoting equality. In this section, we discuss the government’s efforts to increase accessibility to healthy food options, the political implications of food desert policies, and the government’s efficacy to promote

Food deserts are “Neighborhoods and communities that have limited access to affordable and nutritious foods.” (Illinois Advisory Committee, 2011, p.4). Food deserts are mostly comprised of areas or communities that do not have equal access to healthy food as do other communities, but, however, have many unhealthy options instead. People affected by urban food deserts are mostly minority groups such as African Americans and Latinos. Many single mothers and children are also often affected by urban food deserts. According to Mari Gallagher, the founding president of the National Center for Public Research, major health risks for diabetes and cardiovascular diseases are predominantly found in food deserts. Urban food deserts are a crisis in Chicago that needs to be unraveled. To eradicate the existence of Chicago’s urban food deserts, city officials must recognize food insecurity as a civil right concern, work to promote the establishment of grocery stores in impoverished communities, and sponsor nutrition campaigns to better educate residence on the importance of healthy living.

In the last decade, the prevalence of Detroiters lack of fresh food and basic needs has been covered wildly by journalists in the United States. This crisis, often called a food desert, has affected the poorest citizens still confined inside Detroit's inner city today. It has ultimately caused obesity, health issues and an overall lower quality of life for the community. This crisis is a direct effect of the capitalist industry that exploited the city, its people and its economy in the 20th century. Not only the private automobile industry in Detroit, but private food companies also exploit impoverished areas with cheap and processed food. These forgotten laborers of Detroit

The issue of food deserts and its related problems such as, obesity and malnutrition, underlie the problem of food security. Lack of food security can be mostly found in impoverished areas, it is due because there is a lack of grocery stores, farmers’ markets, and healthy affordable food providers. Food deserts have become a problem that is not only affecting this generation, but the next generations to come. Food deserts matter, because about 23.5 million Americans are living in a food desert, and nearly all of these people are also low income, according to DoSomething.org. People who face

The best lasting answer to food deserts may be to turn them green. We should promote a compacted walk able community that holds up local business and grocers in the low-income area. Having ready admission to inexpensive healthy food shouldn’t be an extravagance of the superior classes, it should be an essential structural mass of all city

Fixing food deserts is about more than just building grocery stores in low-income areas. There is much more that can be done in communities to build a strong food system. It is challenging, nearly impossible, to state the be intervention practices for food deserts. It is difficult to implement the same intervention in all communities, because no two communities are exactly the same. Nevertheless, interventions and policies of the past give other policy makers ideas for intervention in their own neighborhoods; an intervention built on the community’s

Food deserts, defined by the Center for Disease Control (CDC), are areas “that lack access to affordable fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat milk, and other foods that make up the full range of a healthy diet”. The causes and impacts of food deserts are based on racial, health, economic, and environmental factors that influence one another. In response to this issue, there is both local and federal action being taken to find a solution.

Since 1965 many people have immigrated to the greater Los Angeles area than anywhere within the United States. These immigrants have rapidly and profoundly transformed the city’s ethnic makeup and spared heated debate over their impact on the region. Unfortunately within many areas of Los Angeles there are those who have been pushed out of their homes, which have been passed through generations of ethnic minorities in other areas due to gentrification. These gentrified areas have been renovated by the city to allow for a much more comfortable living experience. One specific way this has happened is by allowing an ease of access to mainstream markets that provide “necessary” measures for their lifestyle. However those of this community are not the only communities that wish to adhere to this lifestyle. Many Angelinos, although living within a community that is seen as poor and unhealthy, actually care about the food that they put within their bodies. The resources that are readily available in the gentrified location in Los Angeles, but not to other parts force them to eat from local markets and convenience stores close where the quality is unhealthy.

Thibodeaux, Jarett (2015) City racial composition as a predictor of African American food deserts, Urban Studies Journal. 1-15

With the many financial challenges and intimidating odds, Will Allen, author of The Good Food Revolution, built the country's most renowned urban farm that was once a big gamble to becoming an education center for every level that currently produces enough produce and fish to feed thousands in cities year-round. His mission at his company, Growing Power, is employing young people from cities housing projects to prove that a local food system can help troubled youths. Not only are local farms a place for troubled youths to learn responsibility but to also dismantle racism, create more jobs, improve health, and bring urban and rural areas closer together. Today, Allen is country wide with Growing Power creating community food systems. The title of the book, The Good Food Revolution, puts forward that growing healthy food will lead to healthier

Hunger in America is a societal issue that must receive public attention. Public health advocates are in a position to promote changes that can contribute to food security to the citizens of the nation. Federal efforts and involvement in the expansion of relief programs that are sustained by policy will allow for improvements of the current status of hunger in America. Improvement of food assistance programs that set standards for the nutritional need present in American families and allows the identified families access to resources that benefit their current situation in regards to hunger. The trend among low- income status and families that suffer from hunger is indisputable. Expanding food distribution and establishing food security for families who may not currently be aware or in a position to enroll in assistance programs is a public policy concern. It is the responsibility of the individuals, local and federal government to control and become involved to provide access to quality foods for the citizens of America. Nutrition and disease are clearly linked and malnutrition can heavily impact the health of our nation. Involvement of health public policy in ending hunger is needed to prevent disease and promote wellness. In order for beneficial implementation of health policy, the public and community members must advocate the policy and allow for the policy to be practiced in society. The ethical points involved in this policy involve the extent of funding the cost of