alleviating food deserts in englewood

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In Chicago's Englewood Neighborhood Quinlan School of Business & Just Business Present Alleviating Food Deserts

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Briefing document for participants of Quinlan School of Business's design thinking workshop on alleviating food desserts in Chicago's Englewood Neighborhood

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Page 1: Alleviating Food Deserts in Englewood

In Chicago's Englewood Neighborhood

Quinlan School of Business & Just Business Present

Alleviating Food Deserts

Page 2: Alleviating Food Deserts in Englewood

According to the USDA, food deserts are defined as urban neighborhoods and ruraltowns without ready access to fresh, healthy, and affordable food. Instead of

supermarkets and grocery stores, these communities may have no food access or areserved only by fast food restaurants and convenience stores that offer few healthy,

affordable food options. The lack of access contributes to a poor diet and can lead tohigher levels of obesity and other diet-related diseases, such as diabetes and heart

disease. Chicago's social sector is addressing food insecurity holistically. Promisingsolutions inclusively address access, land use, health, education and poverty.

The Gallagher ReportThe emphasis on finding a solution to Chicago’s food deserts has grown over the last decade; it was includedas part of Mayor Emanuel’s campaign platform and has garnered increased attention since the release of MariGallagher Research and Consulting Group’s report on food deserts issued in 2006. This 40 page comprehensivereport provided a look at the staggering number of Chicago citizens living with limited or no access toaffordable and healthy food options. The report utilized the “Food Balance Theory”, comparing the distancefrom a residential area to any grocer with the distance to any fast food venue, evaluating them within differentdemographic groups including race and income level. The Mari Gallagher report then evaluated various healthfactors within these breakdowns, leading to the conclusion that “food deserts, especially those with anabundance of fast food options, pose serious health and wellness challenges to the residents who live withinthem and to the City of Chicago as a whole.”

Food Desertsand Insecurities

A Brief History Of Chicago's

Page 3: Alleviating Food Deserts in Englewood

The Gallagher ReportGallagher’s report put her at the front of an issue that has since grown in public awareness andimportance. In 2011, Gallagher released an updated report detailing improvement, but also showingthe issue remained for Chicago’s residents. The report again broke out the number of citizens living infood deserts to a variety of categories in order to show how this issue affects Chicagoans of allbackgrounds.

In August of 2013, Mayor Rahm Emanuel released new statistics and information on Chicago’s food deserts inorder to allow for further analysis of the problem. At that time, the office was able to claim efforts over the lasttwo years had caused over a 20 percent reduction in the number of citizens living in food deserts located solely

in low-income areas. However, “the number of Chicagoans both below median income and across all incomesliving at least a half mile from smaller scale grocers, or a retail food establishment licensee with a business

location larger than 2,500 square feet is 425,284, down from 446,040 in 2011,” only a 5 percent decrease. Fooddeserts cannot be measured solely by looking at income level, especially in an urban area where grocery prices

already exceed the national average by over 11 percent.

EnglewoodWelcome To

A Southside Neighborhood

The focus of our design thinking workshop will be on developing solutions toserve residents of Chicago's Englewood neighborhood. It is a south sidecommunity classified as a food desert, located seven miles south of theLoop. Today, there is a 28% home vacancy rate in the neighborhood, which isa consequence of collapsed housing markets and other economic issues,including an inability to maintain an independent commercial market in thearea.

Englewood is an ideal area to pilot a food desert solution. There are manycommunity partners with an existing interest in food access and quality oflife improvement in this neighborhood. The City of Chicago Mayor's Office, aswell as many hyper-local community groups, are highly invested in therevitalization of this neighborhood.

Our data was collected through the Census and the City of Chicago DataPortal. Community and industry experts were also consulted through thedata collection process. As a note, the unemployed population does notinclude under employed persons, which is estimated to be as high as 50%.

How might we improve access to healthy and affordable foodchoices for the residents of Englewood?

D ES IG N Q U ES T IO N

Page 4: Alleviating Food Deserts in Englewood

Median Age: 32

Total Pop.: 30,654

98% Black

Per Capita Income: $11,900

College, Masters, or Doctorate: 7.6%

Some College: 27.9%High School: 33.2%

Less Than High School: 29.4%

Professional Degree: 0.4%

46%

Live in Poverty

28%UnemployedPopulation

Englewood

An

Snapshot

Average Family Size: 2.5

Approx. 51% ofhouseholds

do not own a car

1 Red Line Stop1 Green Line Stop7 Bus Routes

The 2013 PovertyThreshold for theaverage family in

Englewood was around$16,000

98% English99% Born in US

Page 5: Alleviating Food Deserts in Englewood

Monthly Budget

Rent: $659

Groceries: $350Transportation: $200Paycheck: $1900

Utilities, Cell, and Cable: $363

Doctor/Medical: $160 Child Care: $400

Total: $2369

Convenience Stores: 9

Liquor Stores: 11

Food Marts: 22*

Fast Food: 21**

2 Aldis

Credit Cards: $237

+Health

#1 highest years of potential life Lost of all Chicago communities

#4 highest teen birth rate of all Chicago communities

#3 highest rate of childhood lead poisoning in Chicago

14.5% Rate of low birth weight

60% asthma hospitalization rate, compared to 31% average rate in Chicago

Englewood residents are more likely to suffer from many health and lifestyle challenges than most other Chicago communities. They are more likely to die prematurely of cancer, homicide, unintentional injury, heart disease, diabetes, and stroke.

*Family Dollar, or other places where food may exist, but is unlikely to be fresh or consistently available.

**No family or sit down restaurants

Page 6: Alleviating Food Deserts in Englewood

Four Barriers in Englewood

AFFORDABILITYEDUCATION

ACCESSAVAILABILITY

There are four main barriers for the residents ofEnglewood when it comes to a reliable, healthyfood supply. Those barriers are access,availability, affordability, and education. Whendesigning your business plan and solution, keepthese barriers in mind as obstacles that need tobe overcome. A solution that does not addressthese issues will most likely not succeed in thisenvironment.

Single mom, 30, renting an apartment with her 3 boys aged 12, 8, and 6.

An owned home with twoadult females, age 32 and 55,

and four kids aged 3, 7, 10,and 13.

68 year old man, renting anapartment and living alone.

FamilyProfiles

A husband and wife, 39 and 42 own their home with 2 children,

aged 13 and 15.

Page 7: Alleviating Food Deserts in Englewood

A mobile grocery service similar to a book-mobile. Groceries were purchased wholesale andsold on a converted CTA bus driving around various neighborhoods. This business was notprofitable enough to stay in business because the margins on produce were too slim;however the developers proved there was a market for produce in Englewood, but not asustainable business plan for the bus. The service operated for around a year and a halffrom 2011-2012. Englewood was a stop on the bus, but not a central component of theroute.

Championed by First Lady Michelle Obama, a Chicago Native, the Let's Move campaign isdesigned to increase healthy eating habits, exercise, and overall well-being of children and

adults. Part of this campaign included a partnership with Walmart, which promised to open 275new stores in areas considered food deserts. Twelve of these stores were planned for Chicago,with an eye on the Englewood area. While several stores were put in neighboring communities,

the nearest one to Englewood is over 2.5 miles away.

timelineOF PAST INITIATIVES SERVING CHICAGO FOOD DESERTS

2011FRESH MOVES

LET'S MOVE!

later that year...

2013Whole Foods in EnglewoodWith support from Mayor Emanuel, Whole Foods announces they willopen a store in the Englewood Neighborhood. Known for high costitems, Whole Foods promised the neighborhood residents that therewould be a special plan in place for the Englewood store ensuring itemswere affordable.

GARDENING 101Eight schools in Englewood were awarded $20,000 total in grant money to keep

gardens growing at schools, and to engage students in the growing process. Nowstudents that would normally not have the ability or means to garden can experience

the farm-to-table process of the consumption experiences.

2014