For City's Poor, Salem Is A Food Desert

SALEM, MA -- The city's poorest neighborhoods are food deserts where residents struggle to buy affordable, high-quality food, according to a report issued by Salem's Food Policy Council. The group was formed in 2016 and includes officials from local nonprofits in an effort to look into food insecurity. The report is the first major publication by the group and will be used by city officials to shape policy.

The report attributes the lack of decent food options for poorer Salem residents to both not having enough money to purchase higher-quality foods and not having access to reliable transportation to supermarkets, where food is cheaper. The high cost of housing in Salem also means less money to spend on food.

The report also notes that while food pantries can help close the gap, most of Salem's food pantries are located outside of the neighborhoods that most need their services. To address the issue, the Salem Pantry in and the North Shore Community Development Coalition plan to launch a mobile food pantry on July 14.

The Food Policy Council plans to present its report and offer other recommendations at a public forum on July 16 at 7 pm at the City Hall Annex.

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Photo by Dave Copeland/Patch.

Dave Copeland can be reached at dave.copeland@patch.com or by calling 617-433-7851. Follow him on Twitter (@CopeWrites) and Facebook (/copewrites).