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The Influence of Food Store Access on Grocery Shopping and Food Spending

Author

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  • Ver Ploeg, Michele
  • Larimore, Elizabeth
  • Wilde, Parke E.

Abstract

Low access to food retailers selling healthy and affordable foods may lead to reliance on food retail venues that carry a limited range of foods. Reliance on smaller retail stores and restaurants may result in a poor diet and diet-related health problems. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Household Food Acquisition and Purchase Survey contains abundant data for examining how access to food retailers influences where households get their food, including stores and restaurants, and how much they spend at each place. This research looks at households that do not use their own vehicle to travel to a store and live more than 0.5 mile from the nearest SNAP-authorized supermarket or superstore, likely barriers to accessing food. Using a national sample and a low-income subsample that includes participants of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the authors find evidence that access-burdened households have some distinct shopping patterns. They are less likely to visit a large store (supermarket, supercenter, or warehouse store) than households with a vehicle or close access (77 percent compared with 87 percent). While those with burdened access who do visit these venues do so less frequently, both groups average over two shopping events at these stores (2.4 events for access-burdened households compared with 2.8 for those with sufficient access). The differences in shopping frequency do not translate to less spending at these large stores as both access-burdened and sufficient-access households spend about 58 percent of their food budget there. Access-burdened households spend a greater share of their budget at food-at-home sources (73 percent) and a smaller percentage of their food at restaurants of all types (27 percent) than households with better access (63 and 37 percent, respectively). Overall spending patterns are similar for both SNAP participating and low-income nonparticipating households that are access-burdened compared with those who have sufficient access.

Suggested Citation

  • Ver Ploeg, Michele & Larimore, Elizabeth & Wilde, Parke E., 2017. "The Influence of Food Store Access on Grocery Shopping and Food Spending," Economic Information Bulletin 264600, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    • Handle: RePEc:ags:uersib:264600
    DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.264600
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Lin, Biing-Hwan & Guthrie, Joanne F., 2012. "Nutritional Quality of Food Prepared at Home and Away From Home, 1977-2008," Economic Information Bulletin 142361, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    2. Lin, Biing-Hwan & Ver Ploeg, Michele & Kasteridis, Panagiotis & Yen, Steven T., 2014. "The roles of food prices and food access in determining food purchases of low-income households," Journal of Policy Modeling, Elsevier, vol. 36(5), pages 938-952.
    3. Jessie Handbury & Ilya Rahkovsky & Molly Schnell, 2015. "Is the Focus on Food Deserts Fruitless? Retail Access and Food Purchases Across the Socioeconomic Spectrum," NBER Working Papers 21126, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    4. Wilde, Parke & Llobrera, Joseph & Ver Ploeg, Michele, 2014. "Population Density, Poverty, and Food Retail Access in the United States: An Empirical Approach," International Food and Agribusiness Management Review, International Food and Agribusiness Management Association, vol. 17(A), pages 1-16, March.
    5. Clay, Marie & Ver Ploeg, Michele & Coleman-Jensen, Alisha & Elitzak, Howard & Gregory, Christian & Levin, David & Newman, Constance & Rabbitt, Mathew, 2016. "Comparing National Household Food Acquisition and Purchase Survey (FoodAPS) Data With Other National Food Surveys’ Data," Economic Information Bulletin 242451, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    6. Ver Ploeg, Michele & Mancino, Lisa & Todd, Jessica E. & Clay, Dawn Marie & Scharadin, Benjamin, 2015. "Where Do Americans Usually Shop for Food and How Do They Travel To Get There? Initial Findings from the National Household Food Acquisition and Purchase Survey," Economic Information Bulletin 262116, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    7. Rahkovsky, Ilya & Snyder, Samantha, 2015. "Food Choices and Store Proximity," Economic Research Report 210316, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    8. repec:mpr:mprres:8083 is not listed on IDEAS
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    Cited by:

    1. Parke Wilde & Mehreen Ismail & Michele Ver Ploeg, 2021. "The Quality of the Food Retail Environment When Consumers May Be Mobile," Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 43(2), pages 701-715, June.
    2. Elina T Page & Elizabeth Larimore & John A Kirlin & Mark Denbaly, 2019. "The National Household Food Acquisition and Purchase Survey: Innovations and Research Insights," Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 41(2), pages 215-234, June.

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