Food Systems
Access to Healthy Food
Overview
Access to healthy food is measured by distance to supermarkets and other healthy food outlets AND by income status. A low-income household that is more than one mile from a supermarket is identified as being located in a food desert. The data below focuses on the percentage of the entire Nashua population that lives in a food desert.
%
We measure access to healthy food based on the percentage of each census tract within Nashua that is low income and more than one mile from a healthy food outlet, such as a supermarket. These numbers are then applied to the total population and the result is a percentage of the entire population.
6 %
2010
5 %
2015
5 %
2017
6%
5%
5%
What does this Chart Show Us?
This chart is illustrating the data show above. In 2010, 6% of the total Nashua population lived in a food desert. In 2015, that decreased to 5%. While there is no specific goal that has been established for food deserts, ultimately a Livable Nashua would have no one living in a situation where they did not have access to healthy food.
What does this Chart Show Us?
Information on food deserts is assessed at the census tract level. The chart on the left shows us that of the 18 total census tracts in Nashua, ten of those tracts have 0-5% of its population living in a food desert, five of those tracts have 5-10% of its population in a food desert, one tract has 15-20% of the population in a food desert, and two tracts have 20-25% in a food desert.
What do these Images Show?
Maps from 2010 and 2015 show the locations within the city that are struggling with access to healthy food. The 2015 map is still consistent with the food deserts we see today in Nashua. While the overall percent of the population living in a food desert has gone done just slightly. You can see from these two maps that the south western corner of the city has actually seen an increase in the number of people that are living in a food desert. This is something the City will need to examine the causes of in order to properly address.
View Our Sources Here
2010 Access to Healthy Food Nashua, NH
City of Nashua Boundary
Percent of Population by Census Tract That is Low Income and Low Access at 1 Mile
2015 Access to Healthy Food Nashua, NH
City of Nashua Boundary
Percent of Population by Census Tract That is Low Income and Low Access at 1 Mile
How You Can Help
Support the Nashua Farmers Market
Nashua’s Farmers Market hosts weekly markets and events throughout the year. Support your local farmers and enjoy healthy food by purchasing your produce from the Farmers’ Market.
More InformationWindowsill Gardens
A simple way to live and eat healthier is to start gardening. Even without a yard you can grow on a windowsill.
More Information
Nashua will be working with community stakeholders throughout 2018 to develop a comprehensive resilience initiative with the main purpose being to identify acute shocks and chronic stressors impacting our City, now and in the future. We encourage everyone in our community to take part.
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