Partners Through Food: Organizing to Increase Access to Healthy Food

In the late 1980s, residents of Rochester, New York had limited access to healthy and nutritious foods because supermarkets were closing their doors. In 1992, the last supermarket in the Upper Falls community burned down leaving residents of the community with two options: pay high-prices at convenience stores for low-quality food items or travel long-distances to surrounding areas in order to shop for groceries. Upper Falls is located in northeastern Rochester and is a low-income community; in the early 1990s, many residents received food stamps. This combination of factors left the community highly food insecure which was likely to weaken the nutritional status of the community members.

Residents began meeting to brainstorm ideas of bringing a food store back to the community. The group that emerged, Partners Through Food, conducted their own research in order to prove the need for a grocery store in Upper Falls. Group members visited the grocery stores of surrounding areas and documented the number of license plates registered to Upper Falls zip codes; they not only found that the Upper Falls residents contributed greatly to the business at these stores but contributed between $17 and $18 million dollars in business in food stamps alone. This information was used to lobby businesses to return to Upper Falls and strong community organizing efforts brought attention to the need of this community.

To increase the access and availability of nutritious food to the residents of Upper Falls, Rochester, New York.

A new supper market at shopping plaza was created in an abandoned retail space in Upper Falls six years after Partners Through Food was formed. The majority of Upper Falls residents are now able to walk to the grocery store instead of drive and this not only increases physical activity but also reduces the economic burdens of commuting. Moreover, healthier food options are available at lower prices to the residents of Upper Falls.

The shopping plaza has added much needed employment to the area; part of the deal that was made between Partners Through Food and the corporation who made the redevelopment investment, TOPS, was an agreement to hire a certain percentage of local residents. TOPS corporation has used their partnership with this neighborhood as a model for economic development and redevelopment of low-income areas.