Shows that although our food system is unhealthy and unsustainable, successes driven by residents and advocates are cropping up  -- proving that the movement for equitable access to healthy food is gaining strength every day.

Mandela MarketPlace grew out of grassroots community organizing efforts to shift resource dynamics, giving residents access to healthy food retail and neighborhood development funding. Incorporated in 2004, Mandela MarketPlace is a nonprofit organization that currently works in partnership with local farmers, local residents, and community-based businesses to build health, wealth, and assets through cooperative food enterprises.

Read this in-depth case study and accompanying photo essay for more information. 

There are a number of policy options available to catalyze grocery store and supermarket development in food deserts, but most require outlays of public funds. In a fiscally-constrained situations policymakers and advocates seeking funds for these programs must articulate and quantify the full range of societal benefits that grocery stores will bring. This article explores enhanced residential property values as one such benefit and uses data from Oakland, California and a hedonic price model to estimate that proximity to a grocery store adds $20,000 to $30,000 to home values. This increase in value represents increased wealth for homeowners and an expanded property tax base for governments. (Article starts on page 5).

This report provides case studies of two cities—Detroit and Oakland—that are taking innovative steps to repair their food delivery networks. PolicyLink and Michigan State University collaborated to chronicle the efforts of residents and activists, the challenges they face, and the solutions they have developed.