Structural Racism and the Food Environment
Overview
The Racial Equity series provides the link between history and current day health inequities and disparities experienced by people in our community. This educational content was donated by the History and Health programming at the VCU Office of Health Initiatives.
Food insecurity is the state of being without reliable access to a sufficient quantity of affordable, nutritious food.
Poor food environment and food insecurity among African American individuals, resulting from social inequities and systemic issues, further contribute to chronic disease disparities by race/ethnicity.
This module will describe the historical roots of food insecurity and health disparities in Richmond. It will highlight the role of racialized policies within Richmond in the construction of food desert conditions and, subsequently, disparities in chronic disease.
Structural Racism and the Food Environment
Food insecurity is the state of being without reliable access to a sufficient quantity of affordable, nutritious food.
- In 2013, 50 million Americans (14.3 percent) were food insecure.
- In Richmond, VA, 20.3 percent of city residents experience food insecurity.
- According to the USDA, 60,545 Richmond residents lived in a food desert in 2015
Poor food environment and food insecurity among African American individuals, resulting from social inequities and systemic issues, further contribute to chronic disease disparities by race/ethnicity.
- An estimated 22.5 percent of African American households are food insecure compared to White, non-Hispanic households (9 percent).
This module will describe the historical roots of food insecurity and health disparities in Richmond. It will highlight the role of racialized policies within Richmond in the construction of food desert conditions and, subsequently, disparities in chronic disease.
Objectives
- To describe food insecurity and its historical ties to health disparities in Richmond.
- To understand how structural racism is manifested in the food environment.
- To identify resources to aid health care practitioners to address food insecurity.
Food Insecurity in Richmond
Healthy eating is key in preventing and managing chronic illnesses, such as hypertension, diabetes, obesity, and cancer. Yet, the food environments in which African Americans live are often characterized by fewer supermarkets, more fast food outlets, poorer quality goods, longer traveling distances, less fresh produce, and higher prices for nutritious foods.
The presence of a supermarket could lead to a 32 percent increase in fruit and vegetable consumption among African Americans, but geographic isolation and historic zoning laws make supermarkets sparse in neighborhoods with predominantly African American/Black residents in Richmond—namely the east and south sides of the city.
Read the Food Insecurity and Health Outcomes from Health Affairs article for an overview of food insecurity, how it’s measured, and its relation to health outcomes.
Food Insecurity and Health Disparities
Unhealthy diet is not without consequences in Richmond. Individuals most impacted by food insecurity in Richmond also suffer poorer health outcomes and shorter life expectancy.
Cancer in RVA
These geographical patterns are not coincidental. As detailed in Race, Space, and Power, historical policies intentionally created the racially segregated community landscape in the city. These historical policies set the pace for cycles of disinvestment and isolation from resources that have created unhealthy neighborhood environments for low income and racial/ethnic minority residents. Displacement of communities from the city to make room for businesses, including the health system, have further estranged certain pockets of the population from access to resources.
READ the community assessment of the food environment in Richmond in this report from the Institute for Public Health Innovation.
In summary,
- Food insecurity is a major risk factor for poor health outcomes and shorter life expectancy.
- Food insecurity occurs within the context of contemporary neighborhood food environments that were shaped by historical racialized policies.
- These policies have led to racial segregation, social and geographical isolation from resources, and community disinvestment.
- These structural inequities are manifested in racial and ethnic disparities.
What can we do?
Duron Chavis is a local community activist who works to promote health and wellness in at-risk communities. Watch his TEDXRVA Talk
Consult these resources addressing food insecurity:
It is estimated that about 1 in 10 households in the US experienced food insecurity in 2020.* Although food insecurity is not a new problem, the COVID-19 pandemic increased awareness of the problem and its disproportionate impact on historically disenfranchised communities. The American Heart Association believes in the right to healthy food for all people to live their best lives.
Connect with Feed More to volunteer.
Share this website on how to use and budget food stamps via Virginia’s SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program).
Share these patient education handouts from the American Heart Association:
Learn more about diabetes from the American Diabetes Association.
Explore More
For an overview of food insecurity, how it’s measured, and its relation to health outcomes, read the Food Insecurity and Health Outcomes from Health AffairsLinks to an external site. article.
The burden of obesity and its related racial and ethnic disparities is outlined in this essay for Preventing Chronic DiseaseLinks to an external site. at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Visit Renew RichmondLinks to an external site. to watch how youth build healthy communities.
Recent data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. detail American households’ economic well-being and hardship in 2020 and illustrate persistent racial inequities in food insecurity.
This academic article summarizes what is known about the effects of food insecurity on child development. It then considers how food insecurity harms children and explores both direct pathways through child health and indirect pathways through parenting and parent well-being. Finally, after reviewing existing policy for reducing food insecurity, we provide suggestions for new policy and policy-targeted research.
Read this report to learn about the most recent 2021 policies combating food insecurity and to end hunger in Virginia.
This academic article reviews how racism is a fundamental cause of food insecurity.
This rapid research article using 2020 U.S. Census survey data shows food insecurity during COVID-19 in households with children by racial and ethnic groups.
This module was authored by Anika Hines, Ph.D., MPH, assistant professor in the Department of Health Behavior and Policy at the VCU School of Population Health. All modules undergo a rigorous curriculum peer review process.