Food Equity
“Eating well is challenging when few grocery stores are nearby, fresh foods are not affordable, and time to prepare wholesome foods is limited.”
– David K. Jones, PhD (2024).
Ripples of Hope in the Mississippi Delta: Charting the Health Equity Policy Agenda, pg. 227.
Examples of Barriers to Health
Food Insecurity: “Mississippi is the most food-insecure state in the nation, and nearly one-fourth (23 percent) of the population has limited or uncertain access to healthy meals. This is dramatically worse than the national average, in which approximately forty million people, or one in eight, are food insecure.”
– David K. Jones, PhD (2024).
Ripples of Hope in the Mississippi Delta: Charting the Health Equity Policy Agenda, pg. 33.
Food Insecurity: “There are not enough places to buy healthy food in the Delta… Let this sink in. This region, which spreads over more than seven thousand square miles, has between two and eight fully stocked supermarkets, depending on the stores being counted. This is far from adequate food access and makes the Delta one of the most extreme food deserts in the United States.”
– David K. Jones, PhD (2024).
Ripples of Hope in the Mississippi Delta: Charting the Health Equity Policy Agenda, pg. 34.
Affordability: “The cost of food is different in Mississippi, because it is one of seven states that fully applies its 7 percent sales tax to groceries….Mississippi was the first state to impose a sales tax on groceries….The Mississippi sales tax on groceries disproportionately affects low-income families because they have less income to spend on necessities, and they must be more cost conscious in food-purchasing decisions.”
– David K. Jones, PhD (2024).
Ripples of Hope in the Mississippi Delta: Charting the Health Equity Policy Agenda, pg. 37.
What are examples of barriers to health in your community?
Food Equity Policy Goals
#1
Remove structural barriers to accessing healthy foods
#2
Make healthy foods more affordable
#3
Expand educational efforts to increase knowledge about the importance of eating well and how to eat well.
Ripples of Hope
Baby Cafés
A place where women can meet other parents and talk with lactation specialists. Baby cafés address food insecurity, affordability, and education by teaching people about infant nutritional needs and how to save money on basic necessities necessities’ budgets. The cafés also feed parents.
(See pages 50-51.)
The Good Food Revolution
A group of community leaders in Bolivar County who are working to reform the region’s food system. Focused on equity and social justice. Working to build capacity with community input.
(See pages 51–53.)
James C. Kennedy
Wellness Center
A multi-service twenty-thousand-square-foot wellness center in Charleston, MS. Services include nutritional counseling physical and occupational therapy, personal fitness training, health screening services, and walking trails.
(See pages 53–56.)