1. Urban Food Desert: An Inves2ga2on of the University of Alaska Anchorage
Main Campus’ Accessibility to Healthful Food Resources
By: Whitney Lowell, Environment and Society
Faculty Advisor: Dr. Chad R. Farrell, Department of Sociology
Introduc2on
Having access to affordable nutriFous foods such as
fruits, vegetables and other whole foods is a crucial
component to healthy and thriving communiFes.
Unfortunately, in urban areas, nutriFous food is not
always readily accessible. When healthy food is not
accessible to an area, it is known as an urban food desert.
This study is a preliminary descripFve analysis of the
accessibility and walk-ability to surrounding healthful
food sources from the University of Alaska Anchorage
main campus. The goal of this research is to determine
whether UAA is located in an urban food desert.
Methods Findings Considera2ons
Why is UAA considered an urban food desert if food is available to
students, staff and faculty on campus? IniFally, this is not an
unreasonable quesFon, however, an argument could be made
that the majority of food available on campus is considered “fast
food” or “junk foods.” Availability to healthful foods are not
consistent, nor reasonably priced. UAA is making clear strides to
make more healthful choices available on campus. A shining
example of this effort is seen through Environment and Society
(E&S) senior Devin Johnson’s collaboraFon with E&S graduate Kyla
Byers of ArcFc Harvest. Locally grown produce is for sale in the
lobby of the Social Sciences Building every Thursday. UAA would
greatly benefit from having consistent and frequent access to local
food sources such as ArcFc Harvest.
* Further invesFgaFon through surveying the student body,
university employees and analyzing census tract data in
surrounding neighborhoods is needed to obtain a be[er
understanding of food choices available to UAA.

For the scope of this analysis, the
definiFon of an “urban food desert”
relies on the U.S. Department of
Agriculture’s terminology.
In addiFon, use of the USDA’s Food Access Research
Atlas helps illustrate the accessibility of healthful food
resources from the UAA Campus.
Walk Score is an interacFve web site that allows a
person to enter any address and receive that area’s
“walk-ability” score.
Google Earth provides a visual
representaFon of the geographical
locaFons of grocery stores in
relaFon to UAA.
*Restaurants are not included in this preliminary
study, as they do not fit the USDA’s descripFon of
access to healthful food, such as fresh fruits,
vegetables and whole foods.
ApplicaFon of Google maps
was used to calculate Fme of
travel and distance to nearby
grocery stores from the UAA
main campus. CalculaFons
were based on walking,
bicycling, taking public transit
or driving a vehicle.
How does Walk Score measure walk-ability?
• Points are awarded based on distance to
ameniFes.
• AmeniFes within a five minute walk or a quarter of
a mile, are given maximum points.
• No points are given to ameniFes over a 30 minute
walk
UAA ranks low on the walk-
ability scale according to
walkscore.com. Rankings are
on a scale from 0 to 100.
The lower the ranking the higher the dependability on
vehicles to access ameniFes, such as grocery stores.
Nine grocery stores nearest UAA were found to be over
one mile. Transit Fmes decrease as the mode of
transportaFon becomes more efficient. Vehicle-
dependency is clearly needed for ease of access to
healthful food sources. Per the definiFon of “low access”
provided by the USDA, UAA appears to be in an urban
food desert.
Google Earth gives an accurate geographical
representaFon of the locaFons of grocery stores in
relaFon to UAA.
UAA in Need
Through the research in this descripFve analysis, it is apparent
that further invesFgaFon is needed to be[er idenFfy availability
and access to healthful food resources near and on the UAA main
campus. According to the USDA’s Food Access Research Atlas,
UAA and the surrounding UMed area is considered “low-access.”
*It is important to note that some census tracts contain
supermarkets or grocery stores and sFll meet the criteria of an urban
food desert if a substanFal number of people within that census
tract is more than one mile from the nearest grocery store
regardless of income.
Students living on campus are at a disadvantage if they do not
own a vehicle, a bicycle or have the ability to take public
transit. Walking is not a viable opFon for all students living on
campus, nor is it a viable opFon for those working on the UAA
campus. The reality that all grocery stores are over a mile away
from the main campus is alarming. This raises quesFons about
how those on campus are gefng access to healthy, nutriFous
foods.
What is an urban food desert?
The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) has many
measures of access to define an urban food desert.
IndicaFons of a food desert are:
1. Limited access to supermarkets, supercenters,
grocery stores or other sources of healthy and
affordable food that provide a healthy diet
2. Distance or the number of stores in an area in
relaFon to a neighborhood
3. Individual-level resources that may affect
accessibility, such as family income or vehicle
availability
4. Neighborhood-level indicators of resources, such
as the average income of the neighborhood and
the availability of public transportaFon.
To qualify as a low access area by the USDA at least 500 people
or at least 33 percent of the census tract’s popula2on must
reside more than one mile from a supermarket in an urban
area.
UAA is an unlikely locaFon for a food desert since it is an
educaFonal insFtuFon surrounded by predominantly
middle income earning neighborhoods and medical
faciliFes. DispariFes are typically seen in lower income
neighborhoods with limited mobility and access to nearby
grocery stores.