13 December 2007, 19:34 PM
  • The disappearance of independent shops leads to the creation of food deserts and difficulty in accessing healthy food, research by Harper Adams University College reveals.

The study mapped the location of supermarkets and small grocery shops and recorded the number of fruit and vegetables they stock. The results showed many areas in the UK have become food deserts, which are places where people experience physical and economic barriers to access healthy products. The research found that if most people live within walkable distance of a store,  most of these were selling little or no fresh food.

Councillor for Shrewsbury and Atcham Borough Council and senior lecturer at Harper Adams University College, Dr Maxwell Winchester, says, “I am extremely concerned about this issue, which is prolific in several areas of my ward. It is particularly problematic for residents who are without a car, have mobility difficulties or are elderly. In many instances a resident has to travel over 1,000m to their local shop. Food deserts have detrimental long-term implications to public health and our local economy.”

The issue is not helped by the receding number of independent retailers – 29% of which ceased to trade between 2001 and 2007. The research, which mapped large areas including North London, Birmingham, Hampshire, Leeds, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, Shrewsbury, Shropshire, Somerset, Southampton and Stafford, believes the problems is countrywide. It found some people have to travel up to eight kilometres to the nearest shop stocking fresh food.

Tracey Colley, director at Deli on the Square, which has premises in Shrewsbury and Ludlow, says, “I am fully aware of the difficulties Shrewsbury town centre residents have in readily accessing fresh produce, which is a stark contrast to Ludlow where you can walk ten paces and buy fresh, seasonal and locally grown food.”