Philadelphia Food Access

In 2015, The United States Department of Agriculture  estimated  that 39.4 million people live in low-income and low access (LILA) census tracts across America.

Low-income tracts are defined as tracts with “a poverty rate (income at or below the Federal poverty thresholds by family size) of at least 20 percent or the median family income is at or below 80 percent of the median income for the metropolitan area or State.” Low access tracts contain “[a]t least 500 people or at least 33 percent of the tract's population live more than 1 mile from the nearest food store (supermarket, supercenter, or large grocery store) if residing in an urban area or more than 10 miles from such a store if residing in a rural area” (according to the  USDA ).

Essentially, this means that almost 40 million people, or over 12% of the US population, live in poverty with limited access to food and grocery stores - often described as a “food desert.” As one would assume, and has been proven, food deserts occur in areas with high poverty rates and generally low income census tracts.

While Pennsylvania has one of the lowest rates of residents on the LILA tract compared to other states, 24.5% of Philadelphians still live below the poverty line  (according to 2018 data by the City of Philadelphia). 

The map on the left divides the city into high and low poverty areas. The light blue marks areas of high poverty in Philadelphia -- over 20% of the population lives below the federal poverty level. If you break poverty rates down further into the percentage of those living in poverty in a given community, you get the map on the right. As the pink gets darker, the concentration of those who live in poverty increases. There are areas in Philadelphia where over 50% of the community lives in poverty and some areas are as high as 80%.

Poverty’s impacts are pervasive, including access to food stores. Many neighborhoods in Philadelphia do have grocery stores within walking distance (under a ½ mile away), so many people must drive or take public transportation, such as a bus, train, or subway, to reach one. The map below shows communities (in dark blue) without access to a supermarket a 1/2 mile away.

According to The Food Trust, a nonprofit focused on raising food access awareness, “Research has shown that you are where you eat, that the neighborhood you live in has a profound impact on the food choices you make.”

Access to healthy food (or unhealthy food) has a significant impact on one's health. In communities with higher poverty, often there are limited options for healthy food and grocery stores with fresh produce can be miles away.

In recent data released by the City of Philadelphia, the city collected information about access to food stores in each neighborhood in Philly. The data measures of the amount food stores in a specific area. These stores were categorized as either “high-produce supply stores” (HPSS) which are stores such as supermarkets and produce stores that offer healthier foods such as fruits and vegetables or “low produce supply stores” (LPSS) such as convenience stores, gas stations, and pharmacies which offer a higher proportion of sugary beverages and snack foods. The city also collected information on the percentage of those in poverty, access to vehicles for transportation, and the amount of restaurants in an area. The data and definitions of each variable are from  Neighborhood Food Retail in Philadelphia by Planning District )

High-produce supply stores (HPSS) are stores such as supermarkets and produce stores that offer healthier foods such as fruits and vegetables. Access to most HPSS stores are centrally located in one area of the city.

As areas of the map get darker, the concentration of HPSS stores increases. Light areas have minimal HPSS stores. The map on the left maps the amount of HPSS stores around the city, finding that a high concentration of HPSS stores are centrally located. The map on the right controls for population differences in the city. When controlling for population, there are less HPSS stores overall, but they are still centrally located in one area of the city.

In an analysis of the relationship between poverty and HPSS access, there is a negative correlation. In the graph on the left, there is a higher concentration of HPSS stores on the left side of the x-axis, meaning that there is a higher occurrence of HPSS stores when poverty rates are lower. As poverty increases, the occurrence of HPSS declines, represented by the downward slope.

Use the map below to explore access to high-produce supply stores around Philadelphia.

Low produce supply stores (LPSS), such as convenience stores, gas stations, and pharmacies, tend to offer a higher proportion of sugary beverages and snack foods. Access to LPSS stores are more dispersed across the city, however there are more in areas of higher poverty.

As the colors get darker, the concentration of LPSS stores increases. The map on the left maps the amount of LPSS stores around the city, finding that LPSS stores are dispersed throughout the city. The map on the right controls for population differences in the city. When controlling for population, there is roughly an equal amount of LPSS stores based on the population around them. There are a couple small pockets of dark purple, but relatively few compared to the other map.

In an analysis of the relationship between poverty and LPSS access, there is a positive correlation. LPSS stores are spread out across the graph, but their occurrence generally increases both up the y axis and across the x axis. As poverty increases, the occurrence of LPSS increases, represented by the upward slope.

Use the map below to explore access to low-produce supply stores around Philadelphia.

Another way to measure access to healthy food access in Philadelphia is to examine the ratio of healthy food stores to the total amount of food stores (HPSS + LPSS). This will give a good indicator of communities that have a high prevalence of healthy food stores compared to the total amount of food options.

The map on the left shows the ratio of HPSS stores to total stores. The areas in deep purple are areas that have a higher prevalence of HPSS stores compared to the total amount of stores. The paler areas have a lower ratio of HPSS stores to total stores. When combined with the information from the map on the right, the areas of HPSS prevalence are in areas of significantly lower poverty rates than other areas of the city. For example, the upper left side of the map has high HPSS ratio rates (dark purples and pinks) but very low poverty rates (light pink).

From the analysis, it is clear that access to healthy food disadvantages communities in poverty. LPSS stores are available throughout the city and are generally correlated with areas with higher poverty. HPSS stores are more concentrated in one area of the city and are negatively correlated with poverty: lower poverty areas have a higher number of HPSS stores. Additionally, a higher ratio of HPSS stores occur in areas with low poverty percentages. There is a clear link between poverty and a decreased access to healthy foods.