Being able to drive five to 10 minutes to a grocery store is a luxury many don’t think about, but in several rural and low-income communities across the country, grocers are permanently closing, making access to healthy foods more difficult.
This has been the way of life for decades in Jackson, Mississippi. It’s the state’s largest city, yet it has one Walmart, one Kroger and one Whole Foods covering a 100-mile radius. Smaller grocers come in and out of the area as the economy fluctuates.
“This is just the way of life here,” said lifelong Jackson resident Perry Thomas. “We just deal with it as the days go by.”
Mississippi Residents ‘Just Dealing With’ Limited Food Access
