The issue of obesity and nutrition-related illnesses continues to be a real concern in the United States. Malnutrition here is defined not only as not getting enough food, but also not getting nutritious food because there is literally no access to healthy options in a wide radius.
We at Savorique are very conscious of this fact, since our core mission is to carry less processed and more nutritious foods. This map from Slate Magazine illustrates the access problem very well in a graphical manner. It shows the ‘food deserts’, or places where there is no supermarket in range that would carry a decent choice of options. People living there have to rely on the local fast-food or grocery store for their daily meals.
Society sometimes blames a lack of willpower, or knowledge about healthy eating. And there are certainly local, cultural and family habits that are difficult to change. But at this point the media and the public sector has done a really good job at putting the issue to the forefront. We should now also look at the private sector, namely the big and small supermarkets, to expand to the areas where the variety of their offering would be very much welcome by the communities who need it.
Counties with no supermarket within a mile
