ABSTRACT
Poor access to grocery stores and healthy food options present a unique and complicated challenge in rural and urban food deserts. While scholars have well studied the elements of a food desert community, there is little research on activities and interventions to improve food access and the food environment in these areas. This chapter reviews the existing literature on food deserts to determine the framework for activities that improve food access in low access and low income areas. A case study conducted in a rural Nebraska food desert examined existing state and local programs and revealed a concerning reality of few formal programs in place to improve access to healthy foods in some areas with the most need. The existing research and the results of the case study are discussed to recommend the next steps in improving food access in food desert communities.
