Walmart leading effort to offer fresh and local food and produce

By Corinne McCuskey, WHF Associate

In the March 2010 edition of the The Atlantic Monthly, Corby Kummer offers a new perspective on what Wal-Mart is offering its customers. (“The Great Grocery Smackdown: Will Walmart, not Whole Foods, save the small farm and make America healthy?” http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2010/03/the-great-grocery-smackdown/7904/ )

Many people do not associate Walmart with access to healthy and affordable food. Walmart has risen to the heights of commercial success by being known as a great place to find value and savings and not necessarily where most folks go to find fresh fruits and vegetables. Kummer explores this new side of Walmart. The corporation has had its share of high-profile legal disputes; however, these new images in the magazine article and hearing first-hand comments here in Washington is burnishing the superstore’s image.

Kummer explains that the Walmart stores he has visited offered local organic produce at reasonable prices. The products were seasonal and comparable to those offered at a local farmers market or at Whole Foods. Most of all, in the short video attached to the article, Kummer states that Walmart will offer fresh produce to a lot of consumers that would not normally have access to such products. He says that he has not looked into the much discussed ethics or employment issues surrounding Walmart, and that is research you can do on your own. What he does outline is how an American institution not known for promoting healthy eating is offering an opportunity for the majority and minority to access healthy and affordable produce, something much needed in a country that is searching for a solution to trim waistlines and offer healthful alternatives to high-fructose snacks.

“Eat better” is often touted as the mantra for how to fix obesity; however, moving toward better eating is not so easy, especially in a community without a Whole Foods or farmers market and the lack of funds to afford such markets even if they existed in the community. Walmart has the ability to serve most populations, regardless of income and geographic dispersion and enormous power to change what we buy as a society. (Kummer refers to a whole book written about that power: The Walmart Effect.) Walmart is encouraging “eating better” in communities that normally would not be able to access or afford healthy, fresh food. Whatever your personal thoughts about the store, I have to applaud their efforts--whether self-serving or going along with the times, it’s a good move.

Could Walmart be one of the forces that drives down prices for locally grown healthy foods and makes it accessible to the masses? Could it be a major contributor to decreasing the obesity epidemic? That is still up for debate, but it appears that Walmart is trying some new strategies that I will be watching and possibly even buying into.

For more information about what the Healthiest Communities Partnership is doing collectively to encourage healthier lifestyles, click here.

Fighting Obesity

By Meghan Lyle, WHF Associate

Most of us are familiar with the headlines about the US obesity epidemic. In Washington State about 1 in every 4 adults is obese, and even more are overweight. The national spotlight is now on the issue with Michelle Obama promoting her Let’s Move initiative to combat childhood obesity. “One in three kids are overweight or obese,” says the First Lady, “and we’re spending $150 billion a year treating obesity-related illnesses.”

Everyone knows the problem--the question is, what’s the solution? In all likelihood, there isn’t just one solution. Obesity is a many-fold problem, with researchers pointing to factors like an environment filled with advertising and easy access to unhealthy foods, limited time for exercise and poorly designed neighborhood infrastructure, as well as diminishing cooking skills of the average American. A multi-dimensional problem requires a multi-dimensional answer. That’s why the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) awarded funds earlier this year to all of the states to start working on the issue. They are calling this work “Communities Putting Prevention to Work.” The CDC wants the states to use evidence-based MAPPS strategies (which stands for Media, Access, Point of Purchase, Price and Social Services) to make change happen across the country.

One of the hot topics of nutrition research is healthy food access. We know that not everyone lives near a large grocery store with lots of healthy food options. In fact, one of the problems seems to be that disadvantaged groups seem to have more limited access to big grocery stores, while convenience stores seem to cluster in these neighborhoods. The Let’s Move campaign refers to these areas as “food deserts.” Some neighborhoods are getting behind the issue by trying to transform existing convenience stores into places with healthier options. A West Seattle store owner in Delridge got headlines for doing this in December 2009, with help from the Delridge Neighborhood Development Association. Projects like this are needed to increase access to healthy food around the state.

Want to get involved? The Healthiest Communities Partnership with help from the Washington State Department of Health is reaching out to communities across the state to build a broad-based public/private partnership to prevent chronic diseases. It is all about exploring together the best ways to make healthy choices about diet, exercise and tobacco the easy choices.

To learn more about the Healthiest Communities Partnership, click here.