The 2015–2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends that adults consume 1.5–2 cups of fruits and 2–3 cups of vegetables per day. Despite these recommendations, recent data show low consumption. Only 1 in 10 US adults eat the recommended amount of fruits or vegetables each day.
Fruit and vegetable consumption among American youth is also low; just 9% of high school students meet the fruit recommendation, and only 2% meet the vegetable recommendation.
Income-related disparities exist as well, with 7% of adults who live at or below the poverty level meeting the daily vegetable recommendation, compared to 11.4% of adults with the highest household incomes.
Educating individuals on the benefits of a diet rich in fruits and vegetables is important; but alone, these efforts are not enough. To change behavior and improve population-level dietary habits, experts recommend a collective approach that improves the availability and affordability of healthy foods where Americans live, work, learn, and play.
A Local Perspective
Access to fresh produce is limited for areas of Lowndes, Macon, and Montgomery counties. The goal of the REACH Food Systems strategy is to increase the number of places within our census tracts that offer fresh produce and to increase the number of persons with access to healthier foods.
Studies show poor health outcomes have a direct correlation to having limited access to healthy food. Many people living in Lowndes, Macon, and Montgomery counties suffer from chronic illnesses such as high blood pressure, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. These health issues can be prevented, delayed, and/or managed with lifestyles that align with proper nutrition.
When there is no access to healthy food, people will purchase whatever is available to them in their area. Access to fresh fruits and vegetables increases the likelihood of intake, which improves health outcomes.
According to the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, a diet rich in vegetables and fruits can lower blood pressure, reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke, prevent some types of cancer, and have a positive effect upon blood sugar. In addition, reliable transportation and/or required resources to travel to a local supermarket has shown to be a barrier as well.
Many of the REACH target communities are considered food deserts because supermarkets are a significant number of miles outside of these communities. Therefore, it is important to provide ways to combat the issues of healthy food accessibility.
Our Approach To Healthy Foods Accessibility
The REACH team has been working to identify ways to break down barriers and provide solutions for individuals in these communities to receive healthier food options. A successful solution is the implementation of the Healthy Corner Store Program in each REACH county within the 42 REACH census tracts. Additionally, we have partnered with JT Produce, a local produce vendor, to provide fresh produce to the selected Healthy Corner Stores. The selected stores are:
- Stuckey’s: 1122 Tyson Rd Hope Hull, AL 36043 (Lowndes County)
- Chevron: 8749 County Rd 30 Shorter, AL 36075 (Macon County)
- Chevron: 1511 Jackson Ferry Rd Montgomery, AL 36104 (Montgomery County)
JT Produce purchases the produce from farmers in Birmingham and Georgia. They are currently making several deliveries to these stores each week and tracking sales data. They replenish the products at each visit to keep the options fresh and provide variety. Deliveries for the month of April included:
- Apples
- Bananas
- Minneolas
- Oranges
- Pears
- Plums
Produce variety will change according to seasons and availability. The increase in the availability of these products has been beneficial to communities; around 2,000 items were sold in the last reporting period. In addition, Stuckey’s increased their purchase amounts to include a greater produce variety and quantity.
Along with our selected Healthy Corner Stores, the REACH team has compiled a list of other local stores located in each county that sells fresh produce and accepts EBT. This is an effort to inform and educate communities of fresh produce availability and payment options. This list can be found
at thewellnesscoalition.org/stores.
REACH is also aiming to fight chronic illnesses by offering community health programs like Chronic Disease Self-Management, Diabetes Self-Management, and our Diabetes Prevention Program. If you are interested in learning more about these programs, please call 334-293-6502.