All around Arkansas there are numerous so called “food deserts,” or places with limited access to nutritional food; places such as these have a lower income level. Therefore, these places do not have access to transportation to obtain healthier food. Some solutions to this problem are working with local farmers to implement a community garden, bringing in mobile farmers markets that will accept Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and educating people on the recommended nutritional foods to eat each day, and how they can achieve that on a budget. The most appropriate solution to lack of nutritional food in lower income communities is having mobile farmers markets, because these have the possibility to reach the largest number
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These markets accept SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) so people of lower income status will be able to afford the products offered. When using SNAP, buyers receive double the amount of product because Fresh2You Farmers Markets match SNAP dollar-to-dollar (Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance par. 6). The ability to match SNAP is essential to these people getting the recommended daily food intake (Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance par. 7). Mobile farmers markets have the ability to reach a large number of people who do not have access to transportation. Kathy Webb, the executive director at Hunger Relief Alliance, stated in a phone interview that Hunger Relief Alliance planned on aiding other organizations wishing to begin a mobile farmers market program. The goal is to spread these markets farther than just around Little Rock, and eventually have mobile farmers markets all around the state. The only problem with mobile farmers markets is the cost of running them. Providing nutritional food for lower socioeconomic status individuals is not cheap, and so the cost of running such markets could get high. The high cost of these markets means that they cannot support all of the residents in these lower socioeconomic status communities for long. The only way for people to support themselves completely is for them to rise above the poverty …show more content…
Therefore, a solution must be found, yet none of these solutions alone will solve the problem. Community gardens alone run the risk of not being maintained by residents; education in schools and communities does not make nutritional food more inexpensive. Mobile markets can become costly when supporting large numbers of people for long periods of time. While none of these solutions alone will solve the problem, but together they can have a major impact. One must reach out to churches and other organizations who are willing to volunteer their time and run the markets, but mobile markets can only come through towns once or twice a week, so community gardens can make up for the gaps. After these two solutions are implemented, there is still the problem of people not knowing what to do with the resources given to them. Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance has a team of individuals who teach people how to make the most of the food they have. So, with all three of these solutions working in tandem, one could see how accessibility to nutritious food in lower socioeconomic status communities would
These markets accept SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) so people of lower income status will be able to afford the products offered. When using SNAP, buyers receive double the amount of product because Fresh2You Farmers Markets match SNAP dollar-to-dollar (Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance par. 6). The ability to match SNAP is essential to these people getting the recommended daily food intake (Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance par. 7). Mobile farmers markets have the ability to reach a large number of people who do not have access to transportation. Kathy Webb, the executive director at Hunger Relief Alliance, stated in a phone interview that Hunger Relief Alliance planned on aiding other organizations wishing to begin a mobile farmers market program. The goal is to spread these markets farther than just around Little Rock, and eventually have mobile farmers markets all around the state. The only problem with mobile farmers markets is the cost of running them. Providing nutritional food for lower socioeconomic status individuals is not cheap, and so the cost of running such markets could get high. The high cost of these markets means that they cannot support all of the residents in these lower socioeconomic status communities for long. The only way for people to support themselves completely is for them to rise above the poverty …show more content…
Therefore, a solution must be found, yet none of these solutions alone will solve the problem. Community gardens alone run the risk of not being maintained by residents; education in schools and communities does not make nutritional food more inexpensive. Mobile markets can become costly when supporting large numbers of people for long periods of time. While none of these solutions alone will solve the problem, but together they can have a major impact. One must reach out to churches and other organizations who are willing to volunteer their time and run the markets, but mobile markets can only come through towns once or twice a week, so community gardens can make up for the gaps. After these two solutions are implemented, there is still the problem of people not knowing what to do with the resources given to them. Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance has a team of individuals who teach people how to make the most of the food they have. So, with all three of these solutions working in tandem, one could see how accessibility to nutritious food in lower socioeconomic status communities would