Children in Philadelphia who attended public schools and shopped at corner stores before or after school purchased almost 360 calories of foods and beverages per visit, according to new research published in Pediatrics. Chips, candy and sugar-sweetened beverages were the most frequently purchased items. This is the first study to document both what foods and beverages children purchased in local corner stores on their way to and from school, and the nutritional content of those items.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
A Little Money Buys a Lot of Calories at the Corner Store
Some sad statistics from RWJohnson Foundation research in Philly... does anyone know if similar research has been done here?
Louisiana's on Board with Healthy Retail!
Some states are way ahead of us in connecting food systems and economic development... but Louisiana? If there's anything good that came out of Katrina, it's that the state is paying attention to the need to serve communities better and to find ways to increase economic development opportunities for their neighborhoods. Here's a story about the Fresh Food Retail Intiative, which uses some CDBG funds (Community Development Block Grant) to create a revolving loan fund for small grocers and fresh food retailers. The program is designed to help retailers increase their shelf space for fresh food and to offer training on stocking, marketing, and selling fresh food. Now who's laughing at Bobby Jindal?
Prospects for healthy corner stores
I'm on a mission to crack the healthy corner stores nut in the King County area. We've got lots of neighborhoods that lack access to fresh healthy food and even more regional food producers who should be connecting to these neighborhoods. There are some great new tools for linking together those who want to buy (like small groceries or corner stores) with those who want to sell. If we can just figure out the logistics of these transactions we'll be on our way to improving public health AND contributing to some economic development in the region. It won't be easy, but Urban Food Link is up to the challenge! (Along with lots of fabulous partners of course!)
For more info, go to www.urbanfoodlink.com
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Docs Get on Board with Healthy School Lunch!
This week the Institute of Medicine recommended that schools focus on providing more fresh, healthy food in their breakfast and lunch programs. Now THAT's a helpful step at healthcare reform and obesity prevention!
For more information, visit my website www.urbanfoodlink.com
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