Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Food Deserts In The Breadbasket: A Rural-Urban Comparison, Michael J. Miller, Patrick S. Rissler

Center for Engagement and Community Development

This research seeks to better describe and understand rural and urban food deserts. Previous research on food deserts suggests that, as a result of discriminating structural social mechanisms like redlining and neighborhood disinvestment within large metro areas in the U.S., poor and black individuals and households tend to be at a distinct advantage in terms of healthy food accessibility and availability (Miller et al. 2015). Similar trends in grocery store disinvestment have been seen in rural areas though there has been less research attention in these areas. In this paper we analyze the differences and similarities between the dynamics that …