Park said that many rural areas are grocer free for simple reasons: There is little to no profit for independent grocers.
“The food industry is so competitive. They average a net profit of about 1%, ”he said. “You can invest a lot in a business for very little return, and that makes it difficult for us to do business.”
One solution, he said, is a collaborative or collaborative approach.
“It’s about creating something where the main motivation is to provide a service and not necessarily to make a profit. It’s really ironic that we’re in some of the best farming areas in the world, but we have these food deserts. “
Park compared the collaborative approach to setting up rural electricity cooperatives almost a century ago. The aim could be to “at least provide fresh fruit and vegetables”.
“This has been made even more important by COVID, especially with supply chain issues during the pandemic,” he added.
The rural population also appears to be less fit than their urban neighbors.
“The rural areas also lack infrastructure and resources for physical fitness. Despite a preconceived notion that rural dwellers “live off the land”, do manual labor and enjoy wide open spaces, many rural dwellers really lack transport options to recreation centers, exercise opportunities, climate and terrain challenges, cost prohibitions, safety concerns and a lack of sidewalks Lighting, ”it says in the summit’s short version. It goes on to say, “In addition, some rural and remote communities may not have sufficient financial resources to build new parks, recreational facilities and designated open spaces, or to support existing ones.”
