In central Florida, it is estimated that more than 90,000 residents live in food deserts. Families living in food deserts are often forced to rely on fast food or processed food sold in neighborhood convenience stores. Such limited food options often leads to poor nutrition and an increased risk of health issues such as obesity, diabetes and heart disease.
In an effort to help Floridians living in such areas, Hebni Nutrition Consultants created the Fresh Stop bus—a mobile farmers market created to serve in-need neighborhoods and offer fresh fruits and vegetables at budget-friendly prices.
“The inspiration of the bus came out of a necessity we saw after conducting a Community Food Assessment in 2009,” said Glen Providence, assistant project manager at Hebni Nutrition Consultants. “That work led us to developing a relationship with a local mom and pop store in the Parramore area of Orlando, where we were able to get grant funding to implement a fresh fruit and vegetables sales in a once vibrant store/neighborhood that was on the decline.”
Founded by three licensed and registered dietitians, Hebni Nutrition Consultants is an Orlando-based non-profit formed in 1995. The organization educates high-risk, culturally diverse populations about nutrition strategies to prevent diet-related diseases, and they primarily serve African-American populations who may be at-risk for cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes and obesity.
The Fresh Stop mobile market launched four months ago. It is a repurposed bus, outfitted with special refrigerated racks for fresh vegetables and fruits. Every two weeks, the bus visits 16 different food desert neighborhoods in central Florida.
“Having a bus like Fresh Stop come to these neighborhoods makes [residents] feel like we care about them. We strive to provide quality produce at reasonable prices,” explains Providence. “Customers enjoy the convenience of shopping ‘at home’ for fresh produce, and it allows them to consume more fresh fruit and vegetables without the hassle of driving out of their neighborhood to grocery stores.”
One of the biggest challenges facing Hebni is ensuring that the Fresh Stop bus is sustainable, and produce sales alone are not enough to make the program self-sustainable. Hebni continues to look for funders and individual donations to assist in the operation of the bus. And, they hope to expand the bus route to the two counties immediately to the north and south of Orlando; Seminole and Osceola counties.
The Fresh Stop bus is having a very positive impact on the communities it serves now. When asked if they’ve received any feedback from residents, one story stands out:
“One of the nicest comments we have received so far is from an elderly woman at a local housing community who said ‘Thank you for loving us.’ Her comment was in response to a stop we made where we did a cooking demonstration and sampled smoothies made from produce on the bus,” Providence shared. “She felt special about the time the bus spent in her neighborhood and was happy to know that her apartment complex was going to be a regular stop on the bus route.”
For more information on the Fresh Stop bus, visit them online.
See Flickr Creative Commons license here.
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Leaders are people who are actively working - either professionally or as volunteers - to change policies and environments to help children eat better and be more active. We use the following criteria to evaluate whether to approve an applicant for Leader status with the Voices for Healthy Kids Action Center.
Do you meet the criteria below? If so, register as a Leader here. There is no cost to be a Leader.
At least one item must be checked within each of the following two categories:
1. Applicant is focused on changing policies and environments
They are working on one of Voices for Healthy Kid's six issue areas:
Ensure foods and beverages in schools meet dietary guidelines
Expand community access to high quality food
Expand physical activity programs in and out of school
Improve built environment in communities to increase physical activity
Use pricing strategies to promote purchase of healthier foods
Use regulation/policy to reduce youth exposure to unhealthy food marketing
They are working on other obesity-related issues, such as:
Transportation policy
Other
Their primary focus is working on individual behavior (e.g., teaching kids about food, play, etc.), but they have access to organizations that could provide opportunities to change environments, such as
Schools
Local Governments
Public Health Agencies
Food producers
Advertisers
Other
Their project is commercial, but contributes positively to changing policies and environments, such as:
Farmer's market
Supermarket
Farmer
Food company
Advertiser
Other
2. Applicant is organizing others or contributing to organizing efforts
They are organizing others by:
Doing training
Providing volunteer opportunities
Building contact lists of supporters to engage in advocacy
Holding events
Other
They provide support to organizations or leaders doing work changing policies and environments, such as:
Funding
Evaluation
Capacity Building
Research
Other
They are a leader in a governmental body that may be the target of organizing efforts to change policies and environments, such as a:
Federal or state agency
Mayor or other local executive office
Federal, state, county or local public health department
Federal, state, county or transportation department
Federal, state or local education agency or school board
Other
If the applicant claims to work for an organization, at least one item must be checked below:
3. Applicant works for an organization:
Has an email address that matches the domain of the organization they list
Is listed on the organization website as staff
The Voices for Healthy Kids Action Center is looking for bloggers who can write about issues that matter to our community on a regular basis. If you would like to be considered for this network, please check this box.
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