Here in Tompkins County, NY, food access is a real issue. According to Feeding America's Map the Meal Gap data, 11,920 people, or 11.6% of people in Tompkins County are food insecure. This means that 11.6% of people in Tompkins county cannot reliable access the food they need. BIPOCBlack, Indigenous, People of Color are most likely to be food insecure.
Parts of Tompkins county also qualify as food desertsA food desert is an area where it is hard to get healthy, affordable food. Food deserts are defined by many different criteria depending on the research being done. according to the USDA.
It should be noted that the concept of a food desert has some drawbacks and has been rejected among some activists and academics; some argue that the idea of food deserts overlooks smaller community resources, as well as the inequity and descrimination that has caused much of these issues. Christa Núñez, Director of Khuba International, argues that we should opt for terms such as food apartheid or food segregation instead, which acknowledge the institutional racism that has led to food access disparities. Even with the contentious terms, I have decided to show this graphic as it still shows a few of the areas where food access is limited according to the USDA.
Look at the pages on this website to read an interview with Christa Núñez and learn about some ways that food access can be improved in Tompkins County.