NYAM's Work Presented at City Hearing on Access to Fresh Food

The current unequal access to healthy foods in our City represents a serious threat to the health of the public. But research has shown that when attractive, fresh fruits and vegetables are easily accessible and affordable, people will eat them. Affordability and accessibility are the keys to helping people improve their diets, especially in poorer communities, so said Ms Ana Garcia, MPH, Policy Associate, The New York Academy of Medicine (NYAM), at a City Council Committee on Community Development hearing on June 23.

Ms Garcia emphasized the need for community-based efforts and city initiatives such as two efforts in which NYAM has participated. First, the Strategic Alliance for Health (SAFH) funded through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is a project aimed to reduce disparities in chronic disease by improving the food environment and physical activity opportunities in East and Central Harlem and the South Bronx. The Alliance does not create a new organization or program to address these issues. Instead, it rallies area advocates and coordinates existing efforts so that participants can, with the force of a public-private, multi-sector partnership, make lasting neighborhood improvements.

Secondly, Ms Garcia spoke of the Borough President’s Office Go Green East Harlem effort which fosters multi-sector, public-private collaboration to bring healthy foods to East Harlem and other neighborhoods, and includes the City Council’s own strong work promoting farmer’s markets and green carts to address the city’s food deserts.

More needs to be done to continue to provide availability and accessibility to underserved populations in New York City. NYAM recommended effectively reaching out to the 400,000 to 800,000 New Yorkers who are eligible but not enrolled in a Food Stamps program, by collecting the relevant demographic information on this group.

“These unused food stamps represent hunger and malnutrition, and also foregone revenue for food retailers in our poorer communities,” said Ms Garcia.

NYAM pointed out New York City’s role as a major food purveyor, offering the suggestion that markets on city property and near city agencies is one way to improve community food availability. Improving the foods available through City facilities can have a major influence on City employee’s health, on the food availability in the communities, and could even be a source of revenue.

“It should be easy to find fresh fruit at the park, but it isn’t. And it should be hard to find candy bars and sugared sodas at City hospitals, but it isn’t,” said Ms Garcia. “Our City food outlets should be models that not only improve the health of their customers, but set a high standard for all food retailers in the community.”

Posted on June 30, 2009

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Contact:
Andrew J. Martin
Director of Communications
The New York Academy of Medicine
1216 Fifth Avenue
New York, New York 10029
212-822-7285
amartin@nyam.org

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