The purpose of the assignment was to identify and map food resources available in the selected area. DeSoto County in Mississippi was selected as the focus of this assignment, and nine food pantries were found in the surrounding areas. Most of the pantries were located in Southaven, Olive Branch, and Horn Lake areas, with some also present in more remote locations. The present paper will seek to summarize the findings and evaluate the availability of services in DeSoto County.
DeSoto County is located to the South of Memphis, at the border between Mississippi and Tennessee. The poverty rate in the area is 10.9%, with almost 18,000 people living below the poverty line (The New York Times, 2014). This figure is significantly lower than that of neighboring counties, such as Marshall County (27.3%), Tunica County (31.4%), and Tate County (18%), although the number of people living in poverty in DeSoto County is the highest in this area of Mississippi (The New York Times, 2014). Hence, population needs in terms of accessible food services in DeSoto County are also more significant. The prevalence of food insecurity in DeSoto County is rather low compared to other counties of the state, but 12.9% to 16.6% reported food insecurity in 2018 based on national data (Deloitte, 2019). People who live in poverty are particularly sensitive to food availability, as they cannot always afford nutritious foods, and thus they require access to food pantries and banks in the area.
The largest cities in DeSoto County are Southaven, Olive Branch, and Horn Lake, and a significant share of people who live in poverty is situated in these three cities. The map of food pantries shows that there is at least one pantry in each of these cities, but only Olive Branch has two pantries. This indicates a rather low availability of accessible food services because four pantries are unlikely to serve the majority of those in need. Still, people who live in poverty and need these services usually live in the areas where a food pantry is available. Therefore, they do not need to travel far to obtain food when they need it. The rate of car ownership in DeSoto County is high, with an average of two cars per household in 2018 (Deloitte, 2019). With a high percentage of car ownership, it is likely that many low-income families have a car and can travel to the food pantry as needed. Those who do not own a vehicle can access the pantries by public transportation, as each of them has a bus stop nearby. This means that people in need should have no problem accessing food services in DeSoto County, even if they live outside of its larges cities.
On the whole, the analysis produced some essential insights. First of all, DeSoto County has one of the lowest poverty rates in Mississippi, which affects the share of people who need food services. Still, the number of people living below the poverty line in DeSoto County is higher than in surrounding areas due to the larger population. Secondly, DeSoto County has a limited number of food pantries available despite the large number of people who need accessible food. Most of the pantries are located in the largest cities, which improves their accessibility. Thirdly, given the high rate of car ownership in the country, it is likely that at least some households can access a food pantry by car. The rest of the population will need to use public transportation, such as buses. Based on the analysis, the accessibility of food pantries in the county is high, but more pantries are needed to ensure that the needs of the entire low-income population of DeSoto County are covered.
References
Deloitte. (2019). DeSoto County, MS. Web.
The New York Times. (2014). Mapping poverty in America. Web.