May 1, 2019
Research says collaboration is needed to address Houston’s "food deserts"
In some cases, groups trying to solve the problem are competing for funding.

A small organic farm in the middle of Houston’s concrete sprawl.
Travis Bubenik for Marketplace
The U.S. Department of Agriculture says more than 50 million people across the country live in “food deserts” – low-income communities where it can be hard to find healthy food. According to the last census, in 2010, almost 2 million of those people live in the Houston area alone. New research suggests the problem is persisting in Houston in part because the variety of groups trying to solve it aren’t always coordinating their efforts. And in some cases, they’re even competing for funding.