Healthy Food Access Resources

This application was developed through a partnership with the Master of Geospatial Information Science and Technology (MGIST) program at North Carolina State University and NCAH. There are two main purposes for this application. First, it is to show the locations of SNAP retailers in North Carolina and provide the store name and address. Secondly, through geospatial analysis of census data, the application helps identify disparities in SNAP coverage in North Carolina legislative districts (Congressional, Senate, and House).

North Carolina Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Coverage Application

These maps show food access in North Carolina as a state, and in 5 NC cities (Fayetteville, Goldsboro, Lexington, Raleigh, Winston-Salem). Please note that the data used does not represent food deserts, but areas in which residents are low income and where there are low supermarket sales and high rates of diet-related deaths.

State Maps

  • Map 1 – Weekly Sales Volume for Supermarkets
  • Map 2 – Supermarket Sales and Total Population
  • Map 3 – Supermarket Sales and Income
  • Map 4 – Low Supermarket Sales and Low Income
  • Map 5 – Income and Diet-Related Deaths
  • Map 6 – Areas With Greatest Need
  • Maps 1-6

City Maps

Overview

  • There are large swaths of the state where residents are suffering with diet-related disease and can’t easily access a venue to purchase healthy foods. In addition to the cites, we see large areas in need in many rural areas. (Map 6)
  • Neighborhoods with greater than average supermarket sales relative to total population could indicate more people are buying groceries in these communities than the number of people who live there. This could mean people are traveling from outside the area to shop there. (Map 2)
  • There are few or no supermarkets in areas that are low income and also have low sales. Since income is lower in these areas, people living there are less able to afford to travel to the areas where supermarkets are concentrated. (Map 4)
  • Summary

Data

  • Total state population (2014): 9,750,405
  • Population in low sales and low income areas (Map 4): 4,391,814
  • Population in low sales, low income, and high death areas (Map 6): 2,256,179
  • 23% of North Carolina’s total population live in areas where residents experience both a lack of access to supermarkets and healthy food and have high death rates from diet-related disease.
  • More than 2 million (2,2556,179) people in our state, including 435,227 children under the age of 15, live in areas where residents are suffering with diet-related disease and can’t easily access a venue to purchase healthy food.

Data Sources

  • Supermarket locations and sales – Nielsen TDLinx Services, 2016
  • Household income – US Census, ACS 2010-2014
  • Diet-related deaths – North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, mortality data, selected ICD-10 codes, 2014. The causes of death included are based on ICD code review by a team of health professionals. Codes related to diet included diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and some cancers.

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