In rural eastern North Carolina, many areas suffer from food deserts. Low-income families and senior adults on fixed incomes are pressed to purchase food with little or no nutritional value. Fresh produce and proteins are not readily available in these areas which leads to additional health conditions. Feeding Our Neighbors provides fresh produce and protein items on a weekly basis to families in food deserts.
Rural eastern North Carolina is permeated with food deserts which are located across the poorest areas. These food deserts are geographic areas where access to affordable, healthy food options (aka fresh fruits and veggies) is limited or nonexistent because grocery stores are too far away. Without access to healthful foods, people living in food deserts may be at higher risk of diet-related conditions, such as obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.
Greene Lamp provides food distributions in low-income, rural areas which primarily consist of low-income minority ethnic groups who often lack transportation. The distributions provide fresh and shelf-stable fruits and vegetables, proteins (milk, meat, and cheese), and basic cooking items which can feed a family of four for two weeks. Low-income families and children are provided nutritional items to help meet the USDA healthy diet which results in better health.
The project will provide healthy foods to more than 1,000 low-income people living in food deserts who may have limited access to supermarkets and other food retailers offering healthful and affordable foods. It will also be a byproduct to reducing diet-related health conditions; providing children nutritional foods to reduce hunger and provide meals outside of the school day; and reducing the cost of shopping at convenience stores which low-income families cannot afford.
This project has provided additional documentation in a PDF file (projdoc.pdf).
