Low-income Wichitans face barriers in finding healthier foods

A new study released by the Health & Wellness Coalition of Wichita has found specific barriers preventing Wichitans in three ZIP codes from buying healthier foods.

Last year, the coalition discovered 44 square miles in Wichita considered food deserts — areas where low-income residents have little to no access to healthy foods such as fruits and vegetables and who live more than a mile from a full-service grocery store.

The new report, released last week, uncovers six barriers that affect those residents: cost, quality, transportation, stores, sources and personal.

“These food deserts affect a quarter of our population,” said Becky Tuttle, coordinator of the Health & Wellness Coalition. “We interviewed 25 people in each of these ZIP codes to determine if there were any patterns. We asked if they were able to eat healthy, how they did it and what were the barriers from doing that.”

The three ZIP codes were 67211, 67213 and 67214. The 67211 and 67213 area codes represent much of south Wichita; the 67214 area code covers Midtown and part of north Wichita.

“The study shows some people depend on certain modes of transportation or community support to be able to get the healthy food they need,” Tuttle said.

Nearly all those interviewed found the cost of healthy foods a barrier. One was quoted as saying, “By the time I pay rent and utilities, there isn’t much left over for food.”

Residents in these neighborhoods often have additional costs such as time and fuel when it comes to buying their food. Still others said they were often forced to walk or ride a bicycle to a store, which prevented them from buying bulk items.

“When it comes to transportation, we all know that it is critical for food shopping,” Tuttle said. “We also know it is important to have access to healthy foods and understand what that means.”

Last year’s study pointed out that three-quarters of Wichita’s retail food stores carried common items such as canned vegetables, soda, whole milk and canned tuna. Less than a quarter of the stores carried items such as chicken thighs, lean beef and whole-wheat pasta.

The study also said convenience stores make up 40 percent of food retailers but less than half offer fresh fruit and only 9 percent sell fresh vegetables.

Tuttle said the new study indicated that recent grocery store closings negatively affected low-income residents and how those people get food.

“For low-income individuals, food pantries and food banks are critical for survival, suggesting food security is still an issue for many,” the report said.

For others, Tuttle said, the report indicated buying fresh food could be intimidating. “They didn’t want it to spoil,” she said.

So, she said, it becomes important to help educate ways to prepare fresh foods and help residents know that farmer’s markets with fresh produce are not more expensive than supermarkets and to make those markets more accessible in the areas without supermarkets.

Tuttle said the Health & Wellness Coalition of Wichita next will discuss steps and opportunities to help improve access to healthy foods.

“The report is an important insight into the ability of citizens to access affordable and nutritious foods,” said Jon Rosell, a Health & Wellness Coalition board member and executive director of the Medical Society of Sedgwick County. “I think reports like this are helpful for people to start gathering knowledge and converting it into action to help our community be healthier.”

In 2013, Wichita was one of 40 cities across the nation selected to receive a grant to help increase healthy eating and physical activity. The Health & Wellness Coalition of Wichita and its partners created the fitWichita campaign.

This story was originally published October 6, 2014 at 12:20 AM with the headline "Low-income Wichitans face barriers in finding healthier foods."