Concerned with the growing number of Floridians struggling to put nutritious yet affordable food on their tables, state lawmakers are weighing a proposal that would bring full-service stores to their neighborhoods. Florida's Healthy Food Financing Initiative would give low-cost loans to nonprofit organizations or for-profit businesses to put grocery stores in what the federal government calls food deserts. These are Census tracts where a percentage of residents have little money, live more than walking distance from a supermarket selling fresh food, but have no cars to drive to shop.

A cheery, well lit, Save-A-Lot grocery store — featuring fresh produce, lowcost cereals and meat packaging on site — opened this month on Waukegan's southwest side, an area officials called a "food desert" for underserved residents.The store employs 35 local residents and plans to hire two assistant store managers soon, said Save-A-Lot district manager Thomas Hill, after a dozen officials toured the 10,000squarefoot facility Saturday morning.

This case study profiles the Healthy Corner Store Program (HCP) developed as part of The Health Trust’s Good. To Go. (G2G) campaign, a community-based campaign aimed at increasing the purchase of produce and quality foods through a network of on-the-ground, trusted community vendors, including corner store retailers, Fresh Cart mobile produce vendors, farmers’ market managers, and urban farmers. The case study documented key efforts working with corner store retailers in San Jose over the course of two years (2013-15). 

Cultivating Camden seeks to build off of Camden’s existing assets by identifying opportunities to increase food access and economic opportunities within the city.  It analyzes the city’s current food system and food economy, acknowledging the challenges that residents face in accessing healthy food, while at the same time making recommendations to grow food as an economic sector; increase opportunities for food entrepreneurs; engage Camden’s institutions; and support organizations already working to increase access to healthy food, healthcare, and job opportunities.

The first of a three-part series by PolicyLink and Mandela MarketPlace, this case study highlights the ongoing work of Mandela MarketPlace and its partners to build a local food system that prioritizes community ownership in the San Francisco Bay Area. This first case study provides an overview of the organization, offers a historical context of its development, and outlines critical factors that contributed to its existing infrastructure and framework of local ownership. 

View the accompanying photo essay, with original photography from Mandela MartketPlace, and read this blog post by Dana Harvey, executive director at Mandela MarketPlace.

Read the second case study, Cultivating Equitable Food-Oriented Development: Lessons from West Oakland, which explores how the Mandela ecosystem has grown and evolved, and the operations, inner workings, and relationships across its tightly woven network. View the accompanying photo essay, with original photography from Mandela MartketPlace, including a photo courtesy of Michael Short Photography.

Nearly 30 million Americans live in communities without access to supermarkets and affordable, healthy foods. Capital Impact Partner’s new Policy Brief examines the federal government's Health Food Financing Initiative and the innovative work of Capital Impact Partners and other Community Development Financial Institutions to expand access to healthy foods in low-income communities.