Making the Case for Supermarkets:

Making the Case for Supermarkets:

Making the Case for Supermarkets:

Healthier Communities and Stronger Economies

Research provides clear evidence that our diets and our health are influenced by the foods
available in our neighborhoods. According to the United States Department of Agriculture and
researchers nationwide, more than 29.7 million Americans live in communities where it is hard to
find healthy, affordable foods. This problem impacts residents of urban and rural areas alike—
especially those living in lower-income and minority communities. When compared with higherincome
areas, lower-income communities have fewer supermarkets and other retail outlets that
provide a wide selection of affordable, nutritious foods. Instead, they are typically dominated by
convenience stores and fast food restaurants. Stores in these communities are less likely to stock
healthy foods than those in higher-income communities.
Research also demonstrates the economy of lower-income communities is positively influenced
by the development or presence of a grocery store, which can create jobs, stimulate investment
in the neighborhood and anchor complementary retail. Highlighting the dual health and economic
impacts of stores in communities has been key to achieving policy responses to the issue across
the country and at the federal level.

Healthier Communities

In partnership with PolicyLink, a research and advocacy organization, The Food Trust published
The Grocery Gap: Who Has Access to Healthy Food and Why It Matters, a comprehensive review
of more than 120 studies that examine the availability of healthy food and its relationship to diet,
health outcomes and economic revitalization. This review found that studies overwhelmingly
indicate that people who live farther away from a supermarket suffer from disproportionately
high rates of obesity, diabetes and other diet-related health issues. In contrast, when people live
closer to a supermarket, they eat more fruits and vegetables and are more likely to maintain a
healthy weight.
“We have a health crisis in this country, in terms of obesity, diabetes, heart disease and high blood
pressure, that is disproportionately impacting lower-income people and communities of color,”
said Angela Glover Blackwell, founder and CEO of PolicyLink. “Nationally, only 8 percent of African
Americans currently live in a census tract with a supermarket, and far too many Blacks and Latinos
reside in areas underserved by a grocery store.”
Leading health experts, including both the Institute of Medicine and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, have independently recommended that increasing the number of supermarkets
in underserved areas would reduce the rate of childhood obesity in the United States. They also
suggest that state and local governments should create incentive programs to attract supermarkets
to these neglected neighborhoods.

supermarkets: health impacts

• Supermarkets close to adolescents’ and children’s homes are associated with lower rates of
being overweight.
• Communities without a supermarket have higher rates of diabetes and other diet-related deaths.
• Residents living in neighborhoods with at least one supermarket have been found to consume up
to 32 percent more fruit and vegetables than those living in neighborhoods without a supermarket.

Stronger Economies

In addition to increasing access to healthy foods, new and improved supermarkets and grocery
stores can help revitalize lower-income neighborhoods because they generate foot traffic and
attract complementary services and stores, such as banks, pharmacies and restaurants. A 2008 study
by The Reinvestment Fund found that employees at urban supermarkets in distressed areas tended
to live nearby. By employing local residents, supermarkets create jobs for those who need them
most and help create a virtuous cycle, which enables local residents to increase economic activity
within their community.

supermarkets: economic impacts

• New supermarkets can generate more than 250 jobs per store, plus additional construction jobs.
• Supermarkets have been shown to increase housing values in the surrounding neighborhoods
and generate substantial tax revenues.
• For development projects, supermarkets can serve as a vital commercial anchor to attract other
retailers to a specific location.