Feeding food deserts in North Alabama

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WHNT) — Food deserts continue to impact communities in North Alabama– fueled by food insecurity and a lack of affordable healthy options.

As defined by the USDA, a ‘food desert’ is an area where at least 33% of the population lives over a mile away, or beyond walking distance, from a supermarket with produce. In North Alabama, this impacts nearly 2 million people.

Food Bank of North Alabama Chief Operating Officer Joshua Matthews says food deserts force people to choose between easily accessible fast food or making the drive for more expensive healthy options. This choice is even further limited for people without a car.

“There’s a lot of places, pockets in rural areas where it may not be as close to a grocery store,” he said, “it may be a 20- or 30-minute drive to the nearest full-service grocery store.”

In low-income areas, the distribution of grocery stores is even slimmer and the high costs of produce deter many people from making the trip. Instead, many opt for evenly distributed fast-food restaurants.

According to a 2023 study by Auburn University at Montgomery– this exacerbates obesity and other health issues in rural and low-income communities. Matthews says this also affects the health of people living in urban food deserts– or ‘food swamps.’

“There’s a lot of folks we know, who we serve that are seeking assistance that have diagnosed cases of high blood pressure and diabetes,” he said.

In DeKalb County, Fort Payne only has three grocery stores with produce and over 20 fast-food restaurants. Nearly 60% of the population lives over a mile from a grocery store– fitting within the definition of a ‘food desert.’

Fort Payne City Schools use the Farm to School Program – which aims to eliminate the stress on families of living in a food desert by including fresh, local produce in cafeteria meals. Local farmers sell directly to schools and Laran Adkins, Director of Child Nutrition, says it’s beneficial to both families and farmers.

“It’s such a wonderful program because it helps our farmers,” said Adkins. “They’re local here in our area or anywhere in Alabama and it brings great fresh produce and vegetables to our students and normally they might not get those on a regular basis.”

The Food Bank of North Alabama participates in the Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program, or LFPA. States purchase fresh produce from local farmers and redistribute it through food banks to communities needing food assistance.

Jeremy Calvert’s farm participates in the LFPA program and he says it’s good for business because of the steady demand for his crops.

“It keeps my family farm in operation during tough times and I see it as a win-win for everybody because people are getting fresh, local product that’s healthier for them,” he said.

Community gardens also provide produce to people living in food deserts. Alabama A&M University opened a community garden in March that’s open to the public.

For people that can’t make the drive, the Food Bank also operates a mobile food pantry stocked with produce. The Park-it Market provides people living in urban and rural food deserts with produce.

“We’ve been taking it out to Lawrence County and different areas out of our service area that don’t have access to a full grocery store,” said Matthews.

Matthews said the Park-it Market has been a welcome and popular addition to the Food Bank’s resources and people living in food deserts appreciate access to fresh, free produce.

“It can really make a difference in someone’s life, especially someone struggling with a diet-related illness like hypertension or diabetes,” he said, “Which we find in a lot of senior populations we serve.”

People living in food deserts can request a visit from the Park-it Market by contacting the Food Bank of North Alabama.

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