The Delta GREENS (Growing a Resilient, Enriching, Equitable, Nourishing food System) Food is Medicine Project

About this work

This project tests whether a multi-level, community-based intervention to build a sustainable local food economy, paired with Food is Medicine programming, can improve health in the Mississippi Delta. The Delta has a rich agricultural history and some of the nation’s most fertile soil, yet its residents have faced generations of economic hardship, food insecurity, and limited access to resources. About 77% of Mississippi counties meet the U.S.

Department of Agriculture’s definition of a food desert. The project focuses on Bolivar, Washington, and Sunflower, three contiguous Delta counties with high rates of poverty and chronic disease. Of their roughly 100,000 residents, more than 65% are Black/African American and about 30% live at or below the poverty level.

Obesity rates are high (over 50% of women and over 40% of men), and the diabetes rate is nearly double the national average. To address these problems, community stakeholders, including growers, health and agriculture educators, food retailers, and community organizations, have worked to expand access to fresh, locally grown food and create economic opportunities for local farmers. The Delta GREENS FIM Project, a collaboration among Tougaloo College, the Reuben V.

Anderson Center for Justice, the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), Delta Health Center, and Tufts University, supports and strengthens that work in the three counties. The project builds on recent community-based efforts by the Reuben V. Anders…