Fresh produce sold from carts approved in Fort Worth

Diabetes

A long-awaited ordinance amendment allowing the sale of fresh produce from pushcarts was approved by Fort Worth City Council during its May 24 meeting. The item came up faster than expected on the agenda and was quickly approved. The approval is expected to increase fresh produce availability for communities within what is termed “food deserts,” areas where grocery stores are not prevalent.

The DFW Hospital Council (DFWHC) Foundation’s North Texas Community Health Collaborative has been working with the Healthy Tarrant County Collaboration to address diabetes related disparities in the Fort Worth area. Specifically, they have been targeting zip codes 76119 and 76112 where diabetes prevalence is 13 and 19 percent with a 71 percent rate of obesity.

“This has been a wonderful partnership and a learning experience for us,” said Sushma Sharma, PhD, director of public and populations health research with the DFWHC Foundation. “Many thanks to the tireless efforts of all organizations for shepherding this amendment through a lengthy process.”

On January 28, the Fort Worth City Council adopted a resolution supporting a “Blue Zones Project” as a means to improve the community’s well-being and economic vitality. In accordance with that resolution, the North Texas Community Health Collaborative and the Healthy Tarrant County Collaboration have been participating in Fort Worth’s pursuit of a Blue Zones Community designation to improve access to nutritious food as well as help food entrepreneurs have a clear understanding of the city’s pushcart ordinance.

The international Blue Zones Project began in 2004 when Dan Buettner teamed with National Geographic to identify pockets around the world where people live measurably longer. In these “Blue Zones” they found that people reach age 100 at rates 10 times greater than in the U.S.

After identifying five of the world’s Blue Zones, Buettner and National Geographic took teams of scientists to each location to identify lifestyle characteristics that could explain such longevity. They found that the lifestyles of all Blue Zones residents shared nine specific characteristics. One of these characteristics was access to fresh produce, something in rare supply in urban food deserts.

“These projects are just small steps towards helping people live longer, better lives,” Sharma said. “Our attempts at building ‘Blue Zones” in Dallas and Fort Worth are empowered by something as simple as fresh vegetables and fruit sold from carts. Such projects have added an estimated 2.9 years to the average lifespan in other communities around the world.”