Healthy Affordable Food

RWJF Priority: Increase access to high-quality, affordable foods through new or improved grocery stores and healthier corner stores and bodegas

Research shows that having a supermarket or grocery store in a neighborhood increases residents’ fruit and vegetable consumption and is associated with lower body mass index (BMI) among adolescents. Yet, many families do not have access to healthy affordable foods in their neighborhoods. This is especially true in lower-income communities, where convenience stores and fast-food restaurants are widespread, but supermarkets and farmers’ markets are scarce.

Childhood Obesity Policy Priorities

Health policy snapshot

Do All Americans Have Equal Access to Healthy Foods?

Millions of Americans do not have access to healthy, affordable foods. Supermarkets provide the most reliable access to nutritious and affordable produce.

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From Bridging the Gap

Zoning for Healthy Food Access Varies by Community Income

Community zoning policies are more likely to allow fast-food restaurants and retail stores than supermarkets and grocery stores.

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From Healthy Eating Research

Changes to WIC Program Improve Access to Healthy Foods and Beverages Without Increasing Costs

Corner stores, convenience stores, and bodegas in two lower-income North Philadelphia neighborhoods began carrying healthier foods after the federal government made changes to a popular food aid program.

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From the Food Trust

Harnessing the Power of Supermarkets to Help Reverse Childhood Obesity

This report identifies “win-win-win” solutions for consumers, retailers and manufacturers.

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Winning strategies in the fight against childhood obesity

Pittsburgh-Area Supermarket a Showplace for Healthier Food Options

Thanks to a state grant and loan program, Safran Brothers Shop & Save is a gleaming, up-to-date store and a business that is adding jobs to this economically depressed area.

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From the Hudson Institute

Lower-Calorie Foods: It's Just Good Business

Restaurant chains that serve more lower-calorie foods and beverages have better business performance.

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3 p.m. to Bedtime: Crunch Time for Children and Obesity

Crunch Time: Challenges and Solutions

A poll reveals that many parents face a variety of barriers to helping their children lead healthy lives, especially during the "crunch time" from 3 p.m. to bedtime.

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More Research and Resources on Healthy Affordable Food

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Sprouting Healthy Kids Promotes Local Produce and Healthy Eating Behavior in Austin, Texas, Middle Schools

October 8, 2010 | Program Result

The Sustainable Food Center partnered with six middle schools in Austin, Texas, to implement a program to increase children's knowledge of the food system, their consumption of fruits and vegetables and their access to local farm produce.

Snacking in Children

November 1, 2009 | Journal Article

The easy availability of low-nutrition snacks may contribute to childhood obesity in minority and low-income communities.

Food Prices and the Dynamics of Body Weight

April 1, 2011 | Book

A popular policy option for addressing the growth in weight has been the imposition of a “fat tax” on selected foods that are deemed to promote obesity. This study tested the short- and long-run body weight consequences of changing food prices.

Special Supplement of the Journal of Hunger & Environmental Nutrition

December 14, 2009 | Journal Article

This special issue of the Journal of Hunger & Environmental Nutrition identified research opportunities to develop successful interventions within agriculture, food, and health systems, as well as policies and actions for moving toward and achieving community environments that allow healthier diets and reduced obesity.

Measures of the Food Environment

April 1, 2009 | Journal Article

This article reviews the relatively new body of research on the food environment, offering a systematic effort to examine its findings and advance the field.

Measuring the Food Environment

April 1, 2009 | Journal Article

This article examines challenges of measurement in the field of food environment research. This relatively young field has not yet fully addressed psychometric measurement issues, the interaction of social, individual, and environmental factors, and the large scale of data produced from food environment studies.

Measuring Food Environments

April 1, 2009 | Journal Article

This article examines the measurement and study of food environments in historical context. Since food environments are believed to be linked to obesity and chronic disease, a more robust understanding of past food environment research may prove relevant for current research efforts.

Impact of Change in Sweetened Caloric Beverage Consumption on Energy Intake Among Children and Adolescents

April 1, 2009 | Journal Article

This article examines the impact of sweetened drinks and other drinks with calories on the total daily caloric intake of children and adolescents. Sweetened beverages are thought to contribute to rising rates of childhood obesity in the United States.

Creating Gardens in 15 North Carolina Counties

September 20, 2009 | Program Result

FirstHealth is a nonprofit health system covering 15 counties with a network of hospitals, health and fitness centers, primary and dental care centers, and a hospice and home care program.

A New Light Rail Line with Stops in Low-Income Neighborhoods

August 4, 2010 | Program Result

ISAIAH, a faith-based community organization of 90 congregations, mobilized community activists to promote the links between transportation and access to healthy foods and to bring light-rail stops to low-income neighborhoods in the Twin Cities.