In Brief:
- Groceries are about 20 percent more expensive than they were pre-pandemic. Residents who’ve seen their community grocery stores close must trek long distances for fresh food.
- A New York Assembly member and Chicago’s mayor have proposed creating city-owned grocery stores to bring residents affordable, fresh food.
- Government-owned groceries may be a new idea for big cities, but not for rural America. A handful of small towns and cities have tried similar ideas, but with mixed success.
By now, most people are familiar with the concept of food deserts — areas where residents lack ready access to fresh foods. Should local governments step in to operate grocery stores in neighborhoods that don’t have them? Aside from ideological questions over whether governments should get involved with operating retail establishments, there are a number of practical hurdles that are difficult to overcome.
Zohran Mamdani, a member of the state Assembly who is running for mayor of New York, calls for a network of city-owned grocery stores. He promises to bring such stores to every one of the city’s five boroughs. “Without having to pay rent or property taxes, they reduce overhead and pass on savings to shoppers,” according to a campaign statement.
In Chicago, Mayor Brandon Johnson has been exploring a similar idea, following multiple grocery closures in historically underserved neighborhoods. A disproportionate share of Chicago’s Black and Latino residents are food insecure. “All Chicagoans deserve to live near convenient, affordable, healthy grocery options,” Johnson said. “We know access to grocery stores is already a challenge for many residents.”…