By Daniel Breen and Josie Lenora for Little Rock Public Radio.
Broadcast version by Freda Ross for Arkansas News Service reporting for the Little Rock Public Radio-Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation-Public News Service Collaboration.

Several parts of Little Rock can be classified as “food deserts,” or neighborhoods that don't have easy access to a grocery store. Now, city officials are considering a new, at least to Little Rock, solution; a mobile grocery store.

If you stand at the intersection of Chenal Parkway and Bowman Road in west Little Rock, next to Best Buy and The Purple Cow, you’re within a mile of five grocery stores: Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, Walmart, Sam's Club and a newly-minted Aldi.

But some streets in Little Rock aren’t within a mile of any grocery store. That’s called a food desert, and most of them are in lower-income neighborhoods of central and southwest Little Rock.

Being a mile away from a store may not seem like much, but if you have mobility challenges, or you're low on money, this mile can mean the difference between eating and being hungry.

Virgil Miller is on the Little Rock City Board of Directors. He represents Ward One, which covers downtown and encompasses several food deserts. Miller says he’s talked with constituents who come to him to ask: why am I not near a grocery store?

“Because, in the past, there were several grocery stores in the area. They’ve all closed and relocated,” Miller said.

At their core, grocery stores are businesses. They have to turn a profit, and companies say there just isn't a lot of money to be made in some of these neighborhoods. When the Kroger on Colonel Glenn Road closed in 2022, a representative from the company told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette the store had “lost significant profit for many years and if left open, the losses are projected to get even worse going forward.”

Some neighborhoods are what’s called a food swamp. This means they may be near a McDonald’s or a convenience store, but the quality of food there is so low it can cause health problems down the line.

Little Rock Vice Mayor Kathy Webb has spent much of her career working to combat food deserts, serving on a state food desert task force and as executive director of the Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance. What most people wanted was a brick-and-mortar store; but, when the team looked at what other communities were doing to fix the food desert problem, she realized that just building a grocery store doesn't always work.

“A nonprofit opened a grocery store in Baltimore, and we were very excited about it… it went out of business,” she said.

Webb said the grocery store was designed by consultants who had success in building supermarkets in suburban areas, but not ones in the inner city.

“They didn’t talk to the people in the neighborhood to find out what they wanted. They didn’t try to become part of the neighborhood.”

Both Miller and Webb heard that Memphis came up with a creative way to combat the food desert problem. And it seemed to work better.

“A mobile grocery store. It’s almost like an 18-wheeler that has been adapted to have an aisle in the middle of it, and on each side they have food,” Miller said.

The mobile grocery store has fresh produce and other staples. Sometimes, customers can order things on request. They move around neighborhoods stopping at two locations a day. Webb and Miller went on a “field trip” to see it in person.

“The nonprofit had developed relationships with the residents… and it’s much more than just a store,” Miller said.

The hope now is to bring a mobile grocery store like this to Little Rock. But the concept isn’t entirely new to the city.

Paul Kroger–no relation to the grocery store chain–is executive director of Vine & Village, a nonprofit based in Little Rock’s University District. They operate a weekly food distribution program called The Orchard, which serves hundreds of families and unsheltered people living in the 72204 ZIP code.

“People start lining up at about 7 in the morning back here with vehicles, and we start distributing at 1. The line will go serpentining through the parking lot like several blocks long,” he said. “We have a whole team of people out here treating it like an assembly line, giving them different things.”

Each Tuesday, a small army of volunteers comes in to run the drive-up program. But food is constantly coming in; Kroger says they keep as much as a quarter-million pounds of food and other household items on hand at any given time, donated from food banks, grocery stores and restaurants. But, Kroger says they’re not your typical food bank.

“Generally you get a box of food, mostly shelf-stable items, but here that’s the minority of what you get. The vast majority, maybe four or five boxes, 40 to 70 pounds each, of fresh fruit, vegetables, high-quality protein, that’s the emphasis here,” he said.

Back in 2016, then-Mayor Mark Stodola came to Vine & Village, asking them for help with the city’s food desert problem. Stodola’s solution sounds familiar–use an old city bus to distribute food to people who can’t travel to get it.

For several years, the bus, dubbed the Fresh2You Mobile Market, made the rounds of all public housing complexes in Little Rock and North Little Rock. They weren’t just focused on alleviating hunger, but ensuring that people were getting healthy, nutritious food in a sustainable way. Kroger says they offered free samples and recipe cards to customers, much like a traditional grocery store.

“So whatever the bus had for that day, they could pick up those items and they could have already tasted something. Could be a smoothie, could be a fresh salad, something that was pretty simple to do but would really be, not only healthy, but it’s gotta be tantalizing to your taste buds.”

Initially, they charged money and accepted public assistance benefits, but ultimately Kroger says they stopped charging.

“Not being able to really provide the volume of food that people really needed to change the course of their nutritional intake, it was just important that we give it for free. So that’s what we’d been doing for the last number of years until we were shut down by the pandemic,” Kroger said.

The Fresh2You Mobile Market pivoted during the COVID-19 pandemic, partnering with World Central Kitchen to distribute hot meals in place of school breakfasts and lunches. But Kroger says their equipment is aging, and the future of Fresh2You is uncertain.

He’s applying for a grant to buy a new bus, which will then likely focus on delivering food to two new micro home villages currently under construction, which will provide temporary housing to people experiencing chronic homelessness.

But even if the city does end up operating a mobile grocery store, as Kroger found out, the cost of food will remain a concern. Marquis Willis is the Chief Data Officer for the City of Little Rock, and has done research on local people living in food deserts. It showed that, yes, transportation was an issue, but there was a larger issue that's harder to solve.

“The bigger issue that we noticed, 63% of our respondents said that the cost of food was a bigger issue,” he said.

Vice Mayor Kathy Webb said that with all the money in the world she would approach the problem differently. She would build a lot of not-for-profit grocery stores and pay-what-you-want restaurants.

But money is an issue. So, she says, hopefully the mobile grocery store will go forward. Right now, it's in the procurement phase with plans to be finalized in the future.


Daniel Breen and Josie Lenora wrote this article for Little Rock Public Radio.


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The baby boomer generation is getting older and the ability to maintain a healthy lifestyle, including regular access to nutritious meals, can present some challenges.

American Health Rankings reports nearly 14% of Illinoisans aged 60 and above were food insecure in the last 12 months.

In 2023, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed the Illinois Grocery Initiative into law to offer incentives for grocers to open shop in neighborhoods with food deserts.

Christiana Williams, a registered dietitian, explained the lack of food access is also affected or caused by psychological and mobility factors.

"Many of them are living alone and/or can't drive anymore," Williams observed. "There's that potential of them feeling lonely or isolated, which can really impact their motivation to want to actually go out and choose healthy options. From that mental aspect, it can be super frustrating to lose that sense of independence, that they can't just go out on their own like they are used to."

Arthritis in the hands, difficulties with chewing or a lack of having all of their teeth, Williams noted, are additional barriers, which can prevent achieving a balanced diet. She pointed out standing for long periods to prep and cook meals can also create more limitations.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Illinoisans aged 65 and older comprise 11% of the state's population. Although they may have the best intentions and strive to eat balanced meals, extra help may be needed.

Williams explained speaking with professionals trained in menu planning is an excellent option.

"Many supermarkets have dietitians on staff. Many private practice dietitians take Medicaid and insurance," Williams outlined. "It's really all about making sure family members and friends can actually be aware that these resources are out there and connecting those resources with the seniors in their life."

Williams acknowledged many seniors have limited incomes which influence their food purchases and the misconception exists healthy food is more expensive. She advises following basic nutrition guidelines, knowing specific nutritional needs and using a little strategy for grocery and meal planning.


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The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced a widespread recall of Boar's Head deli meats for contamination of listeria earlier this year.

The latest outbreak has led to almost 60 hospitalizations and 10 deaths, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Jose Brandao, assistant professor of food sciences at Utah State University, said the United States has "strong" food-safety policy but lacks proper implementation.

"That means that sanitation needs to be done properly and consistently," Brandao explained. "Especially with listeria, it's a bacteria that forms biofilms. Basically a protective cape that is going to make it a lot harder to clean that bacteria once the biofilm is formed."

Brandao noted bacteria capable of forming biofilms are involved in most bacterial infections, including foodborne diseases but added poor sanitation is often the root cause. Another part of the equation is testing. Documents from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service in 2023 show significant testing cuts were made and it has prompted some to call for more federal oversight and ensure more aggressive inspections.

Brandao stressed he wants to see a better "food safety culture" and argued it does not come from stronger regulation but rather is fostered in facilities.

"You can have the best managers but if your employees don't see the importance in food safety, you are not going to have food safety," Brandao contended. "Just simple stuff like cleaning your hands, cleaning and sanitizing the food-contact surface, are incredibly important."

He acknowledged employees could also care about food safety but lack the appropriate tools and resources from management.

Following reports of mold, insects, dripping water and animal residue dating back at least two years, Boar's Head decided to shut down its plant in Virginia which has been tied to the deadly outbreak. Brandao emphasized such events have immediate and long-lasting impacts.

"We are speaking about the livelihood of people, a company," Brandao pointed out. "We are speaking about an industry that is going to be affected; production levels are going to go down, sales are going to go down, public trust is going to be eroded."

Brandao asserted there are many gaps in research he argued need to be filled, saying more support in scientific research will help reduce the amount of food-safety outbreaks each year.


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September is Hunger Action Month. In North Dakota, it isn't just food banks trying to help underserved populations get nutritious items. Health facilities at the community level are chipping in, too. Community Health Centers are federally qualified clinics that provide primary care to all patients, regardless of their insurance status or ability to pay.

Shannon Bacon, director of equity and external affairs with Community HealthCare Association of the Dakotas, said since 2021, locations in this region have elevated patient screening to get a better understanding of their needs, including whether they have enough healthy food to eat.

"One example, they could ask, you know, in the past 12 months, were they ever worried about whether their food would run out before they had money to buy more?" she said.

She added that type of dialogue with a trusted health provider can help reduce any stigma about hunger and suggested this broader approach to meeting patient needs can help lead to better outcomes for these patients. Through a partnership with the Great Plains Food Bank, some Community Health Centers in North Dakota have onsite pantries, where patients who screen positive for food insecurity are sent home with fruits, vegetables and other healthy items.

Bacon said during these screenings, people also can be referred to the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP benefits, and added that there's an awareness gap in which some patients who meet the criteria don't know where to turn in their community.

"One health center found that a large majority of the patients who said, 'Yes, I am interested in getting connected with food and nutrition resources today,' also said they hadn't visited a pantry in the last year," she continued.

She said asking these questions during a wellness visit can help communities better support individuals who are falling through the cracks in the local safety net.


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