Developing a mobile produce distribution system for low-income urban residents in food deserts.
Low-income households in the contemporary city often lack adequate access to healthy foods, like fresh produce, due to a variety of social and spatial barriers that result in neighborhoods being underserved by full-service supermarkets. Because of this, residents commonly resort to purchasing food at fast food restaurants or convenience stores with poor selections of produce. Research has shown that maintaining a healthy diet contributes to disease prevention and overall quality of life. This research seeks to increase low-income residents' access to healthy foods by addressing spatial constraints through the characterization of a mobile market distribution system model that serves in-need neighborhoods. The model optimally locates mobile markets based on the geographic distribution of these residents. Using data from the medium-sized city of Buffalo, New York, results show that, with relatively few resources, the model increases these residents' access to healthy foods, helping to create a healthier city.
Department of Geography, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY 14261, USA. mjwidene@buffalo.edu
Michael J
MJ
Widener
Sara S
SS
Metcalf
Yaneer
Y
Bar-Yam
D005522:Food Services / Q000191:economics / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000592:standards; D005523:Food Supply / Q000191:economics / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards*; D005638:Fruit / Q000191:economics / Q000600:supply & distribution; D006801:Humans; D008377:Maps as Topic; D017146:Models, Organizational; D009518:New York; D011204:Poverty Areas; D014186:Transportation / Q000191:economics / Q000379:methods; D014504:Urban Health; D014675:Vegetables / Q000191:economics / Q000600:supply & distribution